


I've Been The Prey

by musicaddict08, paladin13



Category: Karlie Kloss - Fandom, Kaylor - Fandom, Taylor Swift (Musician)
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Werewolf, Di is an Asshole, F/F, Infrequent Updates, Not the last work you'll see that tag in, References to Dianna Agron, The authors suggest you bookmark it because we certainly don't know what an update schedule is
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-29
Updated: 2020-06-14
Packaged: 2020-07-24 21:56:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 61,591
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20021656
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/musicaddict08/pseuds/musicaddict08, https://archiveofourown.org/users/paladin13/pseuds/paladin13
Summary: Taylor had always been the odd one out. Friends, family, lovers - it didn't seem to matter. For some reason she couldn't seem to connect with anyone, at least not enough to make them stay. She never thought she's be caught in the gaze of the school's big woman on campus. She certainly never expected the consequences that came from being chased.





	1. The First Meeting

The sight of anyone jogging through along the pathways wasn’t a new one to anyone local. It was every bit as picturesque as their brochures and websites made it seem. The old limestone buildings and lush, well maintained quads provided the perfect backdrop for campus life. The university's athletes regularly used them to get their daily runs in. Other students favoured the quads to study or meet in the shade of a tree with friends. No matter their main reason for attending Knoxville University, most of the population took advantage of Old Campus, weather allowing. On a warm August day like today, it wasn’t any different. No one even thought to give the brunette a second glance as she lightly jogged through the main quad, except for the occasional wave or passing greeting from anyone she knew.

It could only be avoided for so long, but eventually her circuit led her to the overpass the separated Old Campus and New Campus. The grimace that crossed her face as she started across wasn't unusual either. New Campus was largely considered the largest folly in the university's history by the students and alumni. New Campus, despite it's name, wasn't actually particularly new. Just new-er than the original 1860's construction. It’d been at the school for over 40 years. But unlike Old Campus's idyllic limestone buildings and open green space, New Campus was cold. Built in the late 60s, its concrete buildings had been plucked from a catalog. It was considered a wasteland to most of the students, and no amount of carefully cultivated planter beds would change that. Though as she passed the blooming flowers, the brunette gave someone a begrudging point for trying. Shaking her head, she approached the cement and glass monstrosity of a library, and wondered again what they’d been thinking.

It didn’t get any better inside. The original linoleum had been replaced at some point with thin carpet. It really wasn’t much better and did nothing to set off all floors of steel, concrete, and glass. Not for the first time she wished the library was better about letting its copies of course books being taken outside the building. This would be far less painful if she could just do her reading in the quad.

“Good morning, Karlie!” Came a voice from the front desk.

Karlie barely held back a yawn long enough to say hello to the librarian and return her greeting. She'd known she should have started fixing her sleep schedule sooner. But her bed had been so warm and inviting, making it easy to keep sleeping until noon. She was paying for it now. She found herself being thrown into getting up with the sun to train with her teampack before hitting the library to try to get a jump start on her reading. The semester hadn't even started yet and she already wanted a nap. At least she didn't have to work on top of it, Karlie thought and shuddered, remembering Kristine's commenting about seeing one of her classmates working at the diner when she'd gone in for a latte.

She frowned as she learned all of the copies of the recommended supplemental text for her genetics course were still checked out. She'd actually been interested in the chapter about how the same genes presented differently in wolves and mortals. Worse yet, that just left her with organic chemistry and physics to focus on. She'd done all her history reading putting those two off.

It's going to be a really fucking long day, she whined to herself. She could already hear Kristine laughing at her, her sister having warned her about this exact result. Walking through the library, many of the tables surrounded by students huddled together over notes or books, she stopped as she saw a blonde sitting alone at one of the tables.

Then again, Karlie thought, maybe I can turn this day around.

She wasn't sure how she hadn't seen her before. Karlie doubted she'd have missed noticing the pretty blonde around campus, especially not in those glasses. Maybe she was new? It would explain why she was sitting alone. Biting her lip, she took a moment to prepare herself. Alphas charge forward.

“Mind if I sit here?” Karlie asked, feeling a bit guilty when the woman jumped. She must have been to absorbed in her work to hear her approach.

“Huh? Oh, um, of course not.” The blonde was even prettier when she blushed, Karlie noted, watching her shuffle her papers around a bit as though to make space for Karlie, even though it wasn't really needed. The table was more than spacious enough for just two people.

“Not a lot of us in here, this early in term,” Karlie commented, just trying to establish that she'd specifically chosen to sit here, with this girl, and that it wasn't because there were no empty tables. “It's nice to see I'm not the only nerd getting a head start. I'm Karlie.”

“Taylor,” the blonde put down the papers in her hand to reach out and shake Karlie's. Karlie noted that they were mostly soft with some oddly placed callouses. She wondered where they came from but had absolutely no idea how to ask without being a total weirdo. “I'm actually working on a budget.”

Karlie grinned broadly. Kristine had done a budgeting project for one of her classes. “Oh, cool. Business major?”

Taylor's blue eyes went wide behind the glasses. “I...yeah. How did you know?”

“I remember some other business majors I know doing the budget project. I'm sports medicine, but, you know, budgets are important no matter what you study, right?” Smooth, Kloss. Very Alpha of you. Karlie chided herself. Okay, so it wasn't her smoothest opening ever, but she'd also never seen eyes quite that shade of blue before. She didn't think she could be faulted for being a little distracted. Though she'd probably still leave that bit out when she told her sisters about this later.

“Yeah, I started doing that one and it kinda spilled over into my personal life.” Taylor bluffed, knowing she'd begun practicing building and staying to a budget in her last year of high school and had been doing it ever since. Remembering most of the students on campus didn't have to worry about that, she bluffed further. “It's good practice. Seeing what it takes to cover everything.”

Wanting to change the subject, Taylor glanced at the books Karlie had begun to take out of her bag and winced. “Physics and chemistry? Ouch.”

Karlie glanced at the books. She wasn't entirely looking forward to that part of the semester either, although she had the genetics class that was almost fun, and history to balance them out. “Yeah. I was honestly hoping to work on genetics today, but they're already out of the book I need. Hopefully at least one of the copies was accidentally taken home over break and will mysteriously return, otherwise I might have to order it from Amazon.”

Karlie hoped the pretty girl sharing her table would let the overall subject go. Karlie was smart, she had to be to manage pre-med and sports, but she didn't want it to seem braggy. Even without a pile of course books, she could tell the blonde was smart too, even if chem and physics weren't her thing. There were lots of kinds of smart.

“Oh yeah? What book?” Taylor looked genuinely interested, which prompted Karlie to turn the course syllabus her way. Taylor knew how important it could be to get one of the free copies of a text from the library, and if her new friend, at least, she hoped they were becoming friends, needed one, the least she could do was keep an eye out for it.

“Homo Sapien vs Homo Lykonis: A Study in Expression.” Taylor read off before saying dryly, “Sounds like it should be good light reading.”

Taylor mentally winced. Insulting her potential friend's field of study probably wasn't the best way to start things. Why did she do that? She almost let out a physical sigh of relief when Karlie laughed.

“It's more interesting than it sounds.” Karlie smiled. “At least in comparison with organic chemistry.”

“I'll take your word for it.” Taylor said. “What it is about?”

“How the same gene in a human can present differently in a wolf, but that the different presentations can be predicted, most of the time.” Karlie was pleased that this clear non-science major seemed at least a little interested. But was she interested because she was trying to be polite, or because she was interested?

“Oh. Actually, for someone interested in medicine I can see why that would be cool. It might affect how a particular disease presents itself based on if the patient is human or wolf, right?” Taylor hoped she didn't sound like a complete moron. This girl was pretty, and smart, and talking to her. Probably also not gay, but a girl could dream, right?

“That's the general idea.” Karlie nodded. “It's actually one of the most interesting classes I've taken. I've known there were differences, but I didn't realize it went all the way to the same genes presenting differently.”

“It explains why conversion is so heavily regulated though.” Taylor commented, not having realized the change affected everything down to the genetic level.

“Exactly! Most of the time, if a gene isn't harmful in a human, it also isn't harmful in a wolf. Sometimes it can be an improvement. But sometimes, if someone converts unprepared, then they could end up with a harmful medical condition they didn't even know about. That's why there's medical testing too, not just psychological.” Karlie was especially passionate about conversion since her mother had been a mortal, back before she was born.

“Sounds like it's pretty interesting AND pretty important then.” Taylor smiled, but also shifted one of the stacks of paper closer to herself. She was enjoying the conversation. She didn't have all that many all that often, especially with people who weren't her roommate Abigail, but she also didn't want to miss out on the time she wasn't at work, nor did she want to keep her tablemate from her own studies. “I should probably let you learn more about it, huh? Or, um, chemistry or whatever.

“Probably.” Karlie found herself grinning for the first time as she opened her organic chemistry book. She still wasn't sure if Taylor was gay, and she knew it wasn't like she could just ask. She could smell the other woman was mortal and she knew mortals could be weirdly touchy about those questions. The last thing she wanted to do was somehow offend her tablemate. But she was sure that even if Taylor wasn't inclined, she just might end up with a new friend. Which was nothing to scoff at, given the dry humour and personality of the business major.

Wait, Karlie thought. A business major.

Does Kristine know her? Karlie wondered. She knew it was a long shot. The business program was one of the best in country and it was a popular major as a result. It was entirely possible they'd never shared a class. But it wouldn't hurt to ask would it? She just hoped Kristine wouldn't tease her too much about needing her help to get a date before telling her anything.

Karlie thought most new acquaintances would have found the silence they fell into awkward. The need to shore up whatever new bond was forming or just avoid the quiet would have made it uncomfortable. Instead, Karlie was surprised to find it almost familiar to share a space with Taylor like this. Each of them doing their own thing but aware of the other and content to work in their orbit. She didn't even realize how much time had passed until her phone vibrated with a reminder from her mom that she'd promised to be home for a pack lunch since her dad was coming off a shift at the hospital.

“Shit, I have to go.” Karlie grumbled, reluctantly breaking whatever they had fallen into. “I promised I'd be home for lunch. Are you going to be here tomorrow?”

“Um, yeah.” Taylor stumbled for a second, surprised to be asked. She was thrilled at the idea of getting to see the attractive brunette again. It just wasn't usual someone wanted to, unless required by a group project. One of the girls she'd shared a few classes and done multiple projects with was the most open to it, and that was more waving hi and saying a few words if they crossed paths.

“Great!” Karlie beamed, “I'll see you then!”

Taylor realized she probably should move on as well, she was closing tonight at the diner and it would probably be a good idea to run back to her apartment before her shift. If she hurried, she might even have time to run a load of laundry before she had to leave. She envied Karlie a bit, having her family close, although she knew that just because they were nearby didn't mean they got along. Even if her family lived down the block, a lunch with them would be more stressful than the budget she'd been working on. Sigh.

Karlie, on the other hand, eagerly bounded home. Her sisters would all be there, as well as her parents, and it might give her a chance to see if Kristine knew the pretty blonde business major. Maybe not in front of her younger sisters. Not yet. The mortal might not even be into girls, and then she'd have gotten them all excited for nothing. She intended to be Taylor's friend, either way, but she definitely hoped they could maybe be more. Which reminded her. She wanted to bring something for them to share while they studied. Cookies maybe?

-

Tracy jumped a little at the loud bang that echoed through the house. A shouted sorry was quick to follow and Tracy wondered what had her middle pup in such a state she'd tried to take out the side of the house with their front door.

“Hi Mom!” Karlie said, bounding into the kitchen for a hug and an early bite of lunch. Or better yet, dessert if she could sneak it.

“What has you so happy?” Tracy asked, having expected Karlie to come home griping about having supposedly rose with the sun and the horrors of chemistry.

“I had a really good study session.” Karlie shrugged, grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge.

“What's the name of your study session?” Kimby smirked from the counter, even using air quotes.

Karlie threw a dish towel at her in response. “Not like that. I mean I went to the library and it wasn't horrible.”

“Really?” Tracy asked skeptically, knowing this behaviour. She'd seen it in her alpha pup repeatedly, each time she'd met a pretty omega and decided to try and court her. “So there wasn't a girl there?”

Karlie blushed at that, taking a sip of her water. She'd been hoping for a little more time to question Kristine in private before her family found out about her minor case of puppy love.

“There was a girl!” Kimby clapped. “Is she pretty?”

“When did you two meet?” Tracy asked.

“What's her name?” Kariann finally spoke up.

Karlie groaned. She loved her family's support, but she knew they were going to get their hopes up like they did every time. Which was normally not a huge deal, except she was pretty sure mortal courting went even slower than courting an omega. If Taylor was gay, and Karlie still had no idea if she was or if she was seeing things that weren't there, it was going to be a nightmare of them waiting on tenterhooks. Not to mention her little sisters, and older sister she acknowledged once she remembered she still had to question Kristine, were going to be insufferable.

“Can it at least wait until Dad and Kristine are home? I don't want to have to go through the spanish inquisition more than once.” Karlie asked.

“Ugh. Fine.” Kimby's tone made it clear she was NOT actually fine with waiting. But there was also nothing she could do about it.

“Now what's she mad about?” Kimby's twin Kariann was used to these sorts of dramatics, even if they didn't really share that particular trait. Karlie was suddenly even more thankful than usual that Kariann and Kimby were such opposites. She needed a calming influence right about now.

“Kimby's mad about something?” Kristine asked, as she joined the family in the kitchen, grabbing a handful of nuts out of the bowl on the counter, which her mom immediately reclaimed and put back in the bowl.

“Your father will be home in two minutes. You don't need a snack.” Tracy smiled at her daughters. She loved having all her pups together, and even though it happened pretty regularly, it made her remember how fortunate she was every single time. They might bicker, but they were also super close, and she knew they would always support each other. The pack was so important to all of them, it made her proud.

“Karlie won't tell us about her “study session” until everyone's here,” Kimby pouted.

“A study session, huh? What's her name?” The teasing in Kristine's tone made Karlie groan. If Kristine even knew Taylor, she had no idea if she was going to actually help her. At least, not without undue teasing.

“Dad's not here yet.” Karlie said pointedly, knowing it was about the only defence she had left. She stuck her tongue out when Kimby dramatically groaned at that. Deciding to distract herself, she grabbed a stack of plates and nudged Kristine towards the silverware drawer.

“You like her that much?” Kristine asked quietly, standing right next to her sister as they set the table to make sure Kimby couldn't hear.

Karlie bit her lip but nodded. It had only been their first meeting, but something in her had become instinctively intrigued by the pretty blonde.

Her reprieve didn't last long. They'd just set the last dishes on the table when the door to the garage opened.

“I'm home!” Kurt called as he entered the house. He knew his pack would be happy to see him but he knew it wasn't enough to warrant the shouted “Yes!” from Kimby. Shaking his head, he wondered what trouble his youngest pup was causing now.

He certainly hadn't seen her so enthusiastic to help his wife carry the food over to the table. “What's going on?”

“Karlie had a study date today.” Tracy said, hiding her smile as she mentally counted down.

“Oh, really?” Kurt asked. “What's her name?”

“Why did the moon curse me with all of you?” Karlie groaned.

“She was making us wait until everyone was home before she told us anything.” Kimby said, ignoring Karlie's reaction entirely.

Tracy kissed her mate, before saying “well, now I'm making you all wait until the food is served, so you can help me with the roast, salad, and prosciutto-wrapped scallops, or, you can all sit there like bumps on a log and wait.”

Once the pack was finally seated around the table, five pairs of eyes turned expectantly toward Karlie. “So,” her father began, “what's her name?”

“First of all, she's mortal, so if anything is going to happen, it's going to take time. Second, because she's mortal I don't even know if she's gay yet. But third, her name is Taylor.” Karlie blushed and shoved a scallop into her mouth to grant herself a few moments of not having to answer questions.

“What's she look like? Tall, short, hair color? Obviously she's gorgeous or you wouldn't be blushing like that...” Kimby always got straight to the point.

“I, um, I don't know if she's tall, she was sitting down, but I think she might be? She has really delicate features, not quite fragile, but slender. Blonde hair, the most beautiful blue eyes I've ever seen, and she wears glasses...they're really cute on her. Oh, and she's a business major. Kristine, do you know her?” Karlie could finally take a few moments to eat, letting Kristine take the focus of their attention for a few moments, anyway. She knew her family was just excited to see either her or Kristine find their mates, and that with Kristine being a beta it wasn't quite as much of a family focus as her own, but still. It was nice not to have to be the center of attention for a few minutes, anyway.

“I'm pretty sure I do.” Kristine said after swallowing the bite of food in her mouth. “Sounds like Taylor Swift to me.”

“What's she like?” Tracy asked.

“She's nice.” Kristine said and then paused, realizing she really didn't know that much about the blonde despite having had classes together and worked on projects together for years. “Quiet. She keeps to herself, really. I think she's friends with a girl on the swim team. I've heard some people say she's stuck up or lycanphobic but I don't actually think that's it. I think she's maybe just shy or doesn't know how to get out of her comfort zone. Mortal pack bonds are weird after all. She knows I'm a wolf and never blinked or reacted badly. And she's not a good enough actress that she'd be able to hide it, I don't think.”

“She's smart though.” Kristine continued. “Really smart. I don't really know too much about her beyond that. I only just learned she works in that diner right by campus.”

Kimby frowned, thinking that wasn't much to go on.

“Also, I'm pretty sure she's gay, Kar.” Kristine said. “A few people I know were talking about her and Dianna Agron flirting a couple of years back. I got the impression no one thought Taylor was capable of it. It never went anywhere though. The rumours say she turned Dianna down flat but looked like she didn't enjoy doing so. That's when the snob and lycanphobe rumours really started. I don't think Agron took being turned down by a shy mortal well.”

“Why do you think she turned her down?” Kimby asked.

“Perhaps it just wasn't a good match.” Kristine shrugged. “But Agron did have a reputation as a fuckboy. I wouldn't be surprised if Taylor found out and wanted nothing to do with that. She hadn't really been linked to anyone since.”

Karlie growled softly at that, not liking the idea of someone as nice as Taylor had seemed to be being taken advantage of by someone like Dianna Agron. Even though Dianna had graduated before Karlie started, she still knew the rumors. How Dianna had completely ignored the differences in mortal dating and just tried to notch as many mortals as possible without any regard for how it might make them feel.

“You do like her, huh?” Tracy had heard that growl. “Well, you're right that you need to take it slow. I highly doubt she's a lycanphobe if you've both had pleasant conversations with her. She's probably just shy, and had a harder time forming pack bonds here as a a mortal. They have a hard time feeling them, so they're not always sure that the people they're talking to are sincere. But keep talking to her. Even if you're not mates, you might make pretty good friends.”

Karlie nodded. She hoped so. It was the first time she'd felt like this toward a mortal, and she knew sometimes after mating, mortals stopped talking to the people they'd been courting. She didn't want that. She liked Taylor as a person, she thought, not just a pretty face.

“So, what are you going to bring her?” Kimby asked.

“I haven't decided yet. I know mortals can be weird about their meat consumption, so probably not anything like chocolate covered bacon. And it's a library so it can't be too messy.” Karlie shrugged before looking towards Tracy. “I was thinking maybe cookies?”

“That's probably a good choice.” Tracy nodded. “Courting gifts aren't as common for mortals, so something you can at least pretend to share is good.”

“Stay away with anything with nuts.” Kurt said, before clearing his throat pointedly when Kimby snickered and opened her mouth to comment. “Mortals are more susceptible to nut allergies, so until you know one way or the other it's best to err on the side of caution.”

“Right, no nuts. Shareable courting gifts.” Karlie nodded, obviously committing those facts to memory.

“She likes chocolate.” Kristine offered, remembering some of the mortal's winter treats. “And pumpkin spice but it's too early to get ahold of that as easily.”

Karlie committed those facts to memory too. She hoped to still be at least friends with Taylor whenever pumpkin spice season started. She wasn't sure when that was, it wasn't as big a deal for most wolves as it was for mortals. But she'd definitely make sure to get some, if she was close to the mortal at the time. “Maybe chocolate chip? I think that one's pretty universal, right?”

Tracy nodded. “Mortals love those just as much as wolves. Definitely a good choice. And, even better, I'm pretty sure we have all the ingredients, although you might have to get more eggs.”

-

“I'm home!” Taylor called out, entering the apartment. She wasn't sure if Abigail or Matt were even around, but after that one time she'd walked in on them a little too caught up in each other in the kitchen....well, she'd announced herself every time she entered the flat ever since. Even as close as she and Abigail were, there were some things she never needed to see or know and her best friend's O face had been one of them.

Shuddering as the memory came back to her, she tried to distract herself with her mental to-do list. She really should have begun packing earlier, she knew, but she'd been trying to get as many shifts as she could before classes started. It was always easier during the summers, when some of their staff went home to their families and they were left a bit short handed. Sure there were the kids home from college, but the owners would rather give the hours to their year round staff they knew and trusted, if they wanted them. Given she'd had to pay the security deposit plus first and last month's rent....well, she'd definitely wanted them. Even with the extra hours, something that she knew would be at a minimum going forward with their school year staff starting to trickle back into town, she still wasn't sure how she was actually going to move.

Movers were expensive as were moving trucks, but she, Abigail, and Matt all drove sedans. She knew she could pack her car and theirs with most of the boxes but that still left her stuck on how she was going to move her bed or dresser. Or the one couch in the living room she'd contributed to the furniture of the general apartment. Which reminded her, she also would have to try to dig through the local thrift shops for the rest of her furniture. And figure out how to move that. Like she needed more on her to-do list.

Entering her bedroom, she looked around at the place that had become her home and knew the real reason she hadn't begun packing yet. Despite telling herself she hadn't had time with work and studying, or she actually needed most of her limited stuff right up until she moved, she knew it was more she hadn't wanted to give up the place that had come to represent safety and acceptance - more than Nashville ever had - just yet. She envied the wolves that, really. They got to stay safely cocooned in their pack's den, surrounded by love and support, until they had mated and moved out on their own if they were local or had found a place they could surround themselves in the love and support of their friends.

She knew she wasn't losing that by moving out. Not really. Abigail and Matt both had said over and over that they wanted her to stay, and expected to see her a lot if she did move out. This was her decision. She WANTED to get her own place. Graduation was around the corner and being able to be on her own was going to be important. She was hoping to get a job with one of the major wolf marketing firms in the area and she knew her parents wouldn't much like her choice in employer. But the benefits were better and she'd be accepted for who she was, from day one. It would be worth it, she hoped.

Listlessly, she grabbed an empty box and folded the flaps so she could tape it. The old textbooks on the shelf she hadn't been willing to sell back to the bookstore because she might actually need them one day we're as good a place as any to start. Realizing there was one way she could make this at least a little better, she hooked her phone up to the aux cord on her old boom box from middle school and let the music fill the room.

Several boxes later, she jumped at the knock on the door. “Abi, don't DO that!” Taylor laughed though, already anticipating the redhead's response.

“Then don't play your music so loud you can't hear people come in! I've been calling your name since I opened the door.”

Rolling her at the familiar response, Taylor turned down the music so they didn't have to yell over it.

“You've made a lot of progress.” Abigail said, looking around the room. Taylor could see it was weird for her too, seeing the room so bare. The decorations had been some of the first things packed up, stripping the room of a lot of her personality. It made it all a little more real.

“I could only put it off so long, right?” Taylor shrugged. “Given I'm moving tomorrow.”

“You know you don't have to move out, right?' Abigail asked for what felt like the twentieth time as her roommate continued packing. “I like having you here. Matt likes having you here. It's cheaper for everyone having you here.”

“I know you two don't mind but you need your space and my new place is within walking distance of campus. I'll save a fortune on gas and the rent is about the same.” Taylor didn't look up from the box she was taping up.

“Yes, because that's a stellar building.” Abigail muttered, knowing it was safe just....a bit old. She didn't think the elevator had worked in years and the building hadn't been upgraded since it was built. She knew Taylor had gotten a bit of a deal since there wasn't a huge call for single bedroom flats this close to campus but she and Matt were willing to pay the difference in rent if it kept Taylor from being so alone. “Think about this Taylor. Who is going to help eat all the extra food on spaghetti nights?”

“Well it's not like I'm going to say no every time you invite me over.” Taylor joked. Seeing Abigiail's genuine concern, she sighed and hugged her oldest friend. “I'll be fine, Abi. I promise.”

Taylor was sort of happy to have her own space. She knew a lot of her classmates wouldn't get it, but for the first time in her life, she was going to have something that was just hers. No one else to worry about or cater to. If she wanted to sit in her living room naked, she could. Not that she would. But she could. It was going to be expensive, yes, paying her own utilities, but she was saving on gas and even a bit on rent, and the building was perfectly safe. You weren't supposed to use elevators to evacuate anyway. “I'm going to miss my roomie, but I'm kind of...curious...what it will be like to have my own place. It's probably only for the year anyway. Once I'm out of school I'll probably have to find a roommate again, though whoever she is probably won't be as awesome as you are.”

“Okay. Fine. But if you hate it, or it's too expensive, or you're lonely, you can always, always, come here. Anytime, day or night. Your room will be empty anyway except for Matt's guitar and photography stuff, so just dump that shit in the living room if you come back, okay?” Taylor was rolling her eyes so hard she thought they might get stuck, but she knew Abi meant well. “Can we at least help you then? A lot of the swim guys have pickup trucks, and we're all pretty strong? It would save on moving.”

“If the swim team can get all my stuff from three years together into their trucks, I'm totally down. I'll even help buy pizza to help pay them back, since I can't afford much more than that.”

“Done. I'll send a request to the group chat, and I guarantee they'll all show up tomorrow afternoon, with extra boxes and bubble wrap!” Pacified a bit by being allowed to help, Abi bounced off to get her phone. Taylor began to wonder if letting her friend help was such a good idea. At this rate, she might end up hosting a huge swim team bash at her new place. Way to endear myself to the new neighbors.

She knew if Austin had known she was moving, he'd have driven up with some of his football buddies but that was such a long drive and she didn't have the gas money for them. Besides, they probably would eat almost as much as the swim team anyway.

“Have you thought about what you're going to do with the rest of the place? It's not a huge apartment but your couch is not going to really furnish the living room and I know the bedroom is a bit bigger.” Abigail asked once she came back, already taping up a box to start packing Taylor's clothes in.

“I'll figure out something.” Taylor said, no longer surprised at her friend's ability to be on the same wavelength as her most of the time.

“We could go shopping? There's a thrift store just off campus that I heard one of the swim girls talking about. She and her mate found a lot of their stuff there, when they moved in together. They're both middle pups so their parents didn't have much in the way of hand-me-downs.” Taylor was pretty sure Abigail had been asking around on her behalf, and she appreciated it.

“Not a bad idea, I might find some end tables or a chair or two. But not until payday.” Taylor grimaced. Dinner was going to be whatever was in the cabinets, so she definitely had no room to be furniture shopping just now.

“Deal. As long as you let me take you to lunch that day.” Taylor could hear the note of victory in Abigail's voice. She hadn't expected her friend to give in so easily. And Taylor suspected she'd find her best friend replacing a few things around the apartment whenever they did make that shopping trip so Taylor could take the old ones from the apartment. She'd object if she thought she could get anywhere, but she knew if she said no, they'd just appear at her place one day anyway. It wasn't worth worrying over. For now, she just needed to concentrate on packing.


	2. The Second Meeting

Karlie skidded to a halt just at the end of the bookstacks. She'd spent all morning with more energy than she knew what to do with. It had started with her waking up earlier than she ever would willingly. Unsure what else to do with herself, she decided to go ahead and start on the cookies. It ended up being a good thing she did.

In all her efforts to make sure her ingredients were mortal safe, she hadn't thought to double check they had enough of everything. Sure they kept coconut flour in the house anyway, so substituting it for the almond flour the recipe usually called for was easy. With five women in the house, chocolate was rarely an issue either. And they always had the basics like eggs, butter, and baking soda on hand. But she hadn't double checked to make sure they had gelatin.

With a shrug, having researched mortal recipes and found most didn't call for it, she'd continued on. Well, at least her sisters weren't picky. They'd happily taken the batch of too crisp cookies, dunking them in their morning coffee to soften them slightly. Except Kariann, who actually liked them crisp for reasons that rest of them didn't understand.

It'd sent her into a slight panic. She didn't have a backup plan for this. Sure, she could bring something next time, but she wanted to make a good impression. She wanted to make her intentions clear, damn it, before someone else did. She wasn't sure how Taylor didn't have a long line of potential mates following her like lovestruck pups, but she wasn't about to count on that lasting. 

It'd been her mom who'd saved the day, just as Kristine had grabbed her keys, fully prepared to try to make an emergency run to store for her. A packet of sugar free vanilla pudding mix wasn't something she'd have thought to use. But it ended up being just the thing to keep then soft and chewy.

With all of that, it hadn't occurred to her until she got to the library that she had no idea when Taylor was going to be there. Sure the blonde had said she would be, but they'd never mentioned a time. What if she wasn't going to be there until later in the day? Or worse, what if she'd come and gone already? She'd ended up half jogging through the building as if she might just catch Taylor only to freeze when she saw she was actually there.

"Good morning!" Karlie said, trying to sound casual and not like she'd been acting like a pup with their first crush all morning.

Taylor jumped a little at the unexpected voice from behind her. Turning and seeing Karlie, she tried her best to scowl at her but couldn't manage to completely hide her smile seeing her. "Don't sneak up on me like that!"

"Sorry." Karlie grinned, finding the blonde cute when flustered. Setting her bag down, she made sure to move her chair a little closer to Taylor while pulling it out.

"Any luck on your book?" Taylor asked.

Karlie sighed and shook her head. "Nope, so more chemistry for me."

Brightening, Karlie pulled out a ziploc bag. "I did make some treats to make our study time a little more enjoyable though."

"Are...are those chocolate chip?" Taylor's eagerness slipped out and she mentally chided herself. It had been a while since breakfast, and she didn't guess she'd get more than a 'ninety-nine cent nugget' before dinner. So a chocolate chip cookie sounded like actual heaven.

"They are." Karlie grinned. Her family had been right. The mortal was clearly a fan of chocolate chip cookies. "I brought plenty, because I hoped you'd be here to share them. Try one, you know you want to."

Taylor knew she should probably pretend to hesitate for politeness, but the sound her stomach made at that moment made it clear the best thing to do would be to just take one. Taking her first bite, she sound they were softer than she expected. It was a darker chocolate than she was used to, but the vanilla flavour balanced it well. She was a bit surprised by a slight aftertaste that reminded her a bit of when she'd once accidentally put splenda in her coffee instead of sugar. Except less strong and not gross.

"Oh my god," Taylor prayed she hadn't just spewed cookie crumbs across the table. "These are so good! You made these?"

"I did. My mom's recipe. You really like it?" Okay, so doubting her baking ability wasn't the most Alpha move ever, but she'd never baked for a mortal before. She didn't know if tastes were different too. Maybe she'd know that if the library would find that missing copy of her genetics reading.

"It's incredible. Seriously. If that whole 'medicine' thing doesn't work out for you, I'm pretty sure baking is a possible backup plan." Was that flirting? Taylor hadn't flirted in a long time. But the brunette with the killer cookies had a few other killer assets, and she was so friendly, it seemed almost natural.

Now Karlie blushed. "Really? Wow, thanks. I guess it makes sense though, I mean, baking and chemistry are kind of similar. Speaking of which, I'd probably better open the book and actually study a bit. But I'll be insulted if there are cookies left, so don't hesitate if you want one."

Karlie found she could only half focus on her reading. Instead of chemistry, her attention kept straying to the pleased sounds the blonde would make without thinking whenever she bit into a cookie or the times Taylor would lick stray chocolate off her lips.

She rumbled contentedly when she glanced over again later and saw the bag was empty, pleased Taylor had apparently enjoyed her offering. Kariann had said some mortals found the gesture stupidly old fashioned, but she couldn't imagine approaching a woman like Taylor as a potential mate and not making even a symbolic gesture of being able to provide or care for her. She was sure if she even tried, her parents would smack her upside the head.

She was too caught up in thought to realize that Taylor had absentmindedly reached into the bag and realized it was empty.

"Oh god, I'm sorry." Taylor blushed, feeling mortified as she suddenly realized how many cookies she had eaten on automatic. "I didn't realize I was hogging them all."

Karlie shook her head, finding Taylor's reaction adorable. "It's fine. I made them mostly for you. I had my fair share of them."

Her fair share being the one she'd slowly nibbled at to appease the mortal into taking a cookie in the first place. It wasn't like she hadn't made sure to test them before bringing them anyway.

Taylor's phone vibrated on the table, startling them both.

"Oh, um, my best friend and her boyfriend moved in together over the summer. She's my roommate, or, well, she was, so I'm moving to let them have their space. She just texted to remind me that a bunch of guys are coming over to help transport my stuff to the new place, and I still have quite a bit left to pack. Same time tomorrow?" Taylor felt awkward explaining to her new friend, but she didn't think making something up would work well either. Damn her for being so gorgeous it got her tongue tied.

Karlie understood completely. New mates could be a bit much for someone who was still single. Well, new mates were a bit much period. "Oh, yeah, understood. Wish I could help, but I've got track practice this afternoon. But if you need help settling in..." Karlie trailed off. They hadn't even exchanged last names. Was this moving too fast for the mortal world? How would she know?

"Um, yeah, thanks. I think the whole swim team is coming over, but if there's anything left..." Hoo boy. Inviting over a gorgeous girl to her brand new solo apartment. That might be moving a bit fast, considering she hadn't dated, well, ever.

-

"Look who made it!" came the teasing jab, earning nothing but an eye roll from Karlie. Really if they didn't know she was going to be a minimum of 10 minutes late by now then they didn't know her at all.

Opening her locker she started to change, only tuning into the conversation around her when her name was mentioned.

"Hey Kar, who was the blonde you were cozying up to in the library?" Simon asked. "New omega?"

"Her name is Taylor." Karlie said, sounding defensive even to her own surprise. she'd had this same conversation moon knows how many times, but for some reason this time felt different. Maybe it was just she was acutely aware Taylor was mortal? And it was possible mortals might not know things like flirting and plans for potential mates were always up for discussion amongst your closest packmates. At least outside of the ones on the teams or you met at moon parties "And she's mortal."

Silence briefly took over the locker room as everyone looked at each other. Karlie had never even really looked at a mortal beyond cursory appreciation. Not that anyone thought she had issues with them just...she had a type. As cliche as it sometimes was, Karlie tended go go after omegas almost exclusively.

"A mortal? Really?" Guy asked slowly, after a long pause. That was certainly unexpected. He knew a few Taylors, but Karlie hadn't said she was on a team, making it a more unexpected choice. Curious, he turned and asked said, "Hey Simon, what's she look like?"

"Didn't get too good a look at her," Simon shrugged. "But she had blonde hair, surprise surprise. Real long and curly. Had these black glasses. Seemed kinda small. But not, like, height, you know. We're all small next to Kar. Just her build, I guess. She looked like a stiff wind might knock her down."

"She carrying a worn out Jansport with band patches?" Devon asked, eyes narrowing before a smirk began to form. Getting a nod, Devon's smirk immediately became a smug grin. "Yo, shit, is she Taylor Swift, Cap?"

"Swift? That ice queen?" Alice scoffed.

"Maybe the ice queen melteth in the face of a strong alpha." Devon wagged his brows.

"Shut. Up." Karlie's growl was almost a physical presence as it reverberated through the locker room, making every jaw snap shut.

Karlie wasn't entirely sure why she felt this protective of Taylor. Sure, she liked her but she also barely knew her. And this sort of locker room talk wasn't new. She'd have defended her anyway, of course. Her team usually knew the line between talk and being disrespectful and them putting down Taylor like this stung. But she hadn't expected to feel her inner alpha's hackles go up.

"Damn, Kloss. Chill." Devon gave her a perturbed side-eye. He turned to Alice, trying to recover with a smirk. "She's in deep with this one. Ten bucks says Swift refuses to mate her."

Karlie's locker door actually bent a little from the force with which she slammed it shut. She had to take a deep breath to keep her cool. And another. Her words were barely decipherable through her growl, "Not. Cool."

Any further commentary was cut off by Coach Peters coming in. He barely got through the door and hadn't even started to ask why the hell they weren't on the field when he got hit in the face with strong Alpha pheromones. Pretty pissed off ones too. Well, fuck. There was no doubt who it was either, between the dent in Kloss's locker door and the deep breaths she was taking. What had happened to piss her off that much? She was normally a ray of sunshine unless it was early.

"Okay, I want everyone on the field now stretching and warming up." He barked. Seeing no one moving, he continued, "That wasn't a suggestion. Move it!"

He nodded to himself as they started shuffling towards the door. He's definitely have to make sure Kloss got some extra laps to burn off some of the adrenaline. Maybe even some sprints depending on how she ended up doing.

Karlie normally grumbled about sprints but for once, she just nodded and walked to her starting position. As much as she hated them, she knew she had to do something or else she'd definitely need to punch Devon in the face. How had she come so close to losing it? Was it just that Taylor was mortal and she was suddenly more aware of how wolves bantered? Or had he actually become more insufferable? Hell, maybe he'd hit on Taylor himself back in the day and been turned down? Whatever his problem was, she thought with a growl as Coach counted down, he was going to have to get over it if he intended to be able to sire pups in the future.

She and Coach had both hoped the running would do more to calm her down. And it would work.... right up until she looked at certain members of her teampack and her temper flared again. They didn't even really know Taylor so how dare they judge her based off what that fuckboy Agron had said.

She'd just gotten out of the shower and gotten dressed when she heard her team talking in the main area of the locker room.

"Do you really think Kloss is gonna ask out the ice queen?" Devon asked.

"The real question is if she's actually delusional enough not to think the ice made her frigi-" Alice trailed off seeing Karlie standing there seething. She might not be a wolf, but she'd have to be blind not to see her teammate had a tenous grip on her inner alpha right then.

"Please, finish that sentence." Karlie challenged, the alpha ringing true in her voice and making most of the team avert their eyes.

"I just meant-"

"You just meant she shot down that asshole Agron and who knows who else and they got dickhurt. You mean that you'd rather listen to moon knows what they said to their buddies while licking their wounds even though I'm sure she was very nice about it. You mean you can't stand the concept someone just might be shy and not know how to reach out, because moon forbid a mortal not be able to feel pack bonds like us." Karlie growled.

"You mean that you think putting down your fellow mortal makes you more of one of the pack." Karlie said knowingly, enjoying the way Alice flushed in shame. "It doesn't."

"I'm going to ask her out." Karlie said, looking around the room. "Tomorrow. And if the moon blesses me, she'll say yes. But if not, I fully intend to become her friend. Because unlike Devon, my value of someone isn't contingent on them letting me stick my dick in them. And unlike Devon I don't need to do so to make up for any kind of lacking on my part."

With that, Karlie stormed out of the locker room leaving a very taken aback and cowed team behind her.

Kayla was very lucky Karlie didn't hear her say, "The fuck got into her?"

"No, you know what, fuck you guys. She's right." Shawn finally spoke up, to even his brother's surprise. The omega was usually one of the most mellow ones on the team. Him speaking up like this was as uncommon as Karlie losing her temper. "We all know Agron is an asshole."

"That doesn't mean Swift isn't a bitch." Alice scoffed, glancing at Devon who was quick to nod and back her up.

"No, he's right." Guy spoke up. He rarely spoke up about mating matters, knowing he was as blind as any other mortal when it came to that stuff. "Agron was no different from a thousand other douchebag frat boys you'd see at any mortal university."

"You didn't even know her." Devon stated, growling slightly.

"And none of us know Taylor." Simon said, clapping his brother on the shoulder before saying, "Like Shawn said, Agron was an asshole and we all know it. She wasn't looking for a mate, she was looking for more notches for her bedpost."

"And is that really what we want to support?" Angelina asked, knowing Simon and Shawn were right and feeling her gut twist. Sure, Taylor might be as cold as everyone says, but she'd have turned down Di too is she'd approached her. If the moon had wanted that to happen, it would when the alpha stopped trying to take every mortal's wolf virginity. She'd have to apologize to Karlie for not backing her up sooner.

Even Devon went silent at that. All of them knew there were enough bad stereotypes about mating and their more casual approach to relationships before you found your mate. And Agron had been the personification of most of them. By unspoken agreement, they left the matter at that, everyone packing up and going their separate ways. She didn't doubt Shawn would end up in the middle of a Blakesley pack cuddle as soon as whatever swim team activity that kept his mate from watching practice was over.

-

Tracy jumped slightly as the front door slammed hard enough she could hear it from the laundry room. She knew she had locked the front door and Kurt wasn't due home until tonight. The twins were still at school, or they had better be at least. That left just her two eldest pups. She didn't know which pup it was, but she knew they all knew better than to slam doors like that. she shook her head, they all knew better than to slam the doors like that. The sound of the fridge opening and closing didn't narrow down the identity of the pup by much, nor did the way the pup slammed around the contents like they'd personally offended her. She knew she better go see what had happened before it for to the level she had to try and ground her grown child.

"You slam those olives any harder and we're going to need a new jar. What happened Karlie?" Tracy could almost see the steam rising from her middle pup's ears, and it was quite clear that all the slamming was, oddly, her way of restraining whatever had her so worked up. She knew it had to be pretty bad to get her so worked up. Despite being an alpha, Karlie was usually pretty easy going. Her alpha nature usually made her stubborn, rather than hot tempered. Seeing her with her hackles so obviously raised was more than a little disconcerting.

"Taylor's a nice person. She's been nothing but sweet to me, and even Kristine said she's nice. Quiet, but nice." If Tracy didn't know better, she'd say her pup was on the verge of tears as she paced, hand gestures emphasizing her frustration, "Just because she turned down one fuckboy you'd think she'd blasphemed the moon herself and tried to shoot her down. It makes no sense. They have no reason to say things like that about her."

"Okay, Karlie, let's sit down for a second." Tracy guided her pup into the family room so they could sit on the sofa. She sat down next to her and wrapped her arm around her, pulling her close. It seemed her pup was going to need a cuddle. She wasn't sure what had been said, but if it got Karlie that worked up it probably wasn't good. "Not all of your father's friends loved me at first either. And I hadn't previously had to shut down a wolf trying to make me a notch on his belt. Sounds to me like your Taylor is pretty strong for a mortal, turning down that Dianna girl. And sometimes wolves, especially male and alpha wolves, don't like that. They don't like to acknowledge that a mortal or an omega is still strong enough to say no, or that they have that right. You seem very sensitive to the differences in mortal culture, like the way mortals don't mate just anyone, but even male mortals sometimes forget that females aren't theirs to play with. And then take a wolf who's almost never heard no in their life?"

"So, they don't like her because she was strong enough to say no to something she didn't want?" Karlie knew most wolves didn't say no, preferring to mate just in case, but it wasn't a completely unheard-of concept. She had a few friends who turned down men or women who wouldn't make suitable mates, figuring if they were fated, they'd have another opportunity once their potential mate had grown. And for mortals it was even more of a guessing game since they didn't feel the mate bond.

"Maybe. Or maybe they're just jealous you've found someone worth waiting for, even if she turns out to just be a friend. But either way, as satisfying as it might be to break a couple jars of olives, it's not actually going to help you win her over. What will is being my sweet, loving Karlie. Just because you're an alpha doesn't mean you're all strength and force. You know that." Tracy could feel Karlie soften against her. She respected that it was her pup's soft heart that made her so upset at the words of those careless members of the teampack. But she respected even more that her pup could calm herself and not act on her anger. It would serve her well once she did find her mate, because just because a couple were mates, didn't mean they didn't sometimes make each other crazy.

"It's not fair to her though." Karlie sighed, leaning into the cuddle as she felt her anger start to drain away, leaving just disappointment. She really thought her teampack was better than that. "She's really nice, mom. She doesn't deserve for some jumped up entitled jerk to say those things or for people who don't even know her to shut her out over it. They haven't even met her! They're just going off what Agron said."

"I didn't really think about it at the time, but I think she was a bit surprised I wanted to sit and study with her the other day. And I think she was surprised I showed up again this morning." Karlie frowned, wondering what exactly Agron or others had said or what people assumed. And what it must be like to not have anyone, or at least so few people that you don't expect company.

"I mean, I'm guessing some of being so solitary is by nature and preference. No one expects an omega wolf to have a large pack around them or multiple packs so I'd guess mortals can be the same. But she seems unusually aloof, even for an omega. I mean, not even Kristine knows her well or had thought to get to know her and they've had classes together for four years. And you know how Kristine's protective instincts are." Karlie said, shaking her head. She was almost tempted to warn Taylor. No doubt Kristine would be looking to adopt her into her friendpack when she next saw her. She might be the alpha, but there was no doubt her older sister was just as much a protector. "Not to mention she mentioned she's moving dens now since one of her friends is newly mated. I don't think that's making things any easier. I can't imagine how any of us are going to adjust once of us finds out mate and they're not around as much."

"Then it's a good thing you girls know any mate is always welcome in our den," Tracy reminded, squeezing Karlie a little tighter. It wasn't the first time the topic had come up. All of the girls had expressed it at one time or another as they'd gotten older. It was why she and Kurt made sure to get as much pack time in while they could and maintain their bonds, before the girls had mates and litters of their own to juggle. "and that we have plenty of space."

"I know it's different, when you find your mate. The bonds shift ever so slightly so that they're the strongest bond in your pack. And it changes again with pups. But it's still hard to imagine, you know?" Karlie looked up at her mom, a rare gift as she usually towered over her when they stood.

"That's just because you haven't found your mate yet, Karlie. Once you find her, you'll wonder how you ever survived without her and your bond with her. And suddenly, although we'll always be important in your life, and your father and I hope the bonds of our pack will always be enough to keep you and your sisters close, those bonds will definitely feel different to the mate bond. I guess I'm not the best to explain it, since I became aware of all my packbonds at once." Tracy sighed. Sometimes being mortal-born made it harder to relate to her pups who had been raised like the wolf-born pups they were.

"Like Taylor will, if she's my mate. Huh." Karlie realized this could be even more complicated than she'd thought. Sure, as a future doctor, she'd done Mortal Studies. But this was a whole different thing. She suddenly wished she knew more about her Mom's life as a mortal, before her dad. It might help her understand Taylor better.

"Guess I've got to be patient though, don't I?" 

"Your father and I raised you to respect mortals and their customs, yes. And she'll more than likely want to wait a bit before mating." Tracy was pleased her pup had voiced it first. It was so easy for a pup, especially an alpha, to get carried away dating a mortal girl. 

"Then I'll wait. I want to find out if she's my mate, not add a notch to my bedpost. She deserves more than that."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, gentle-readers, that really was an update notification you saw. Your eyes were not playing tricks on you. And it didn't take 6 months! As always, thanks for taking the time to read!


	3. The Move

Taylor had known Abigail called on the swim team to help her move. The red head had been more than a little insistent on it and had sworn up and down that no one would mind helping. It was just what they did for each other, no strings attached beyond an unspoken promise of reciprocation. Taylor wasn’t sure she fully believed that, at least not for someone who wasn’t part of their team, pack, clique thing. But Abigail has never knowingly led her wrong so she’d reluctantly agreed, despite her doubts. She hadn’t figured she would get much beyond a person or two begrudgingly showing up because Abigail almost begged and halfheartedly tape up boxes until a sudden “emergency” came up. She certainly didn’t expect the handful that showed up with extra boxes and tape and old blankets and towels to protect any pictures or furniture. 

“We were all going to come over, but Abigail said you didn't have a lot of stuff and we weren't moving any denmates in with you.” Darrell said, knowing it was weird it wasn't the entire team but wondering why Taylor seemed surprised to see even them there. “So there's also a few at the new place getting it ready. Lucille has a good eye for detail so she's double checking for pre-existing damage while everyone else cleans. I hope it's okay Abigail let us in?”

“You guys don't need to do all that.” Taylor said, completely overwhelmed. She'd thought they'd just be moving her stuff, not helping make the place ready to live in.

“You're her pack.” Garrett shrugged, wondering what Taylor expected. It wasn't news Taylor Swift was weird, even for a mortal, but she was still Abigail's littermate in all but blood. “We do this for each other all the time.”  
Taylor knew she couldn't argue that. She remembered how everyone had teamed up to get Matt moved in and the party the swim team had thrown to celebrate it. It still seemed inconceivable how much wolves took care of each other, and how easily they seemed to adopt others into their packs. Well, most others. Taylor herself hadn't really found a pack, though she knew some of that was down to her. Because of how things had been in Nashville, she was guarded and she knew that. Because of how they still were. Some of the distance she kept had a lot to do with not wanting to have to tell the truth of her parents and their prejudices, should anyone ever get close. Even Abigail didn't know all of it, and they'd been close for years.  
“Well thanks. I really appreciate you guys doing so much for me when all I can offer in return is some pizza and beer.” Taylor knew the refreshments wouldn't be more than a snack for this many wolves, but it was all she could afford. She just hoped they'd understand that she was truly grateful and that the quantity of food was a function of finance and not appreciation.  
“Hey Taylor? ” Abigail cut in, not wanting her teammates to mention the denwarming. She knew it would probably break her friend’s brain a bit. Not to mention her team would probably ask why she was contributing to her own denwarming when it was a gift to her and that was a whole other bag of worms. At least they seemed to instantly catch on now wasn’t the time to ask. "I was thinking, since all your personal stuff is packed and I know what’s whose, it might be better if you headed over to your new place to direct the deliveries and unpacking?“

“It’s fine, Taylor. We’ve got it.” Samantha said. She was petite, a diver, Taylor was pretty sure, though her name escaped her for the moment.

“Oh, yeah, I guess that makes sense.” Taylor said reluctantly, not wanting them to think she was just bailing out on the hard work. “I'll see you guys over there then?”  
The wolves affirmed they would be there, one of them hoisting up a box to carry down to the trucks. Taylor grabbed one too, figuring she could at least help carry something on her way out.

-

Abigail was glad her teammates at least waited until Taylor was gone before asking, “She’s getting pizza and beer? Are we not doing the denwarming tonight? I thought she didn’t have roommates moving in?”

“It’s a mortal custom.” Abigail sighed, knowing she needed to explain before they got the wrong idea. Especially as she was the only mortal in the room. “I know for you guys it’s expected moving and the denwarming is a gift, but for mortals it’s considered a favour. It’s generally considered polite to do something as a thank you, especially if they’re not close pack. Food and drinks is pretty typical.”

“Huh. Wild. Mortals throw their own denwarmings as a thank you for the help moving in?” Samantha still was befuddled. Why would they do that, when they could just help with the next move?

“Not exactly. They do a housewarming separately, although I guess a lot of the time they buy the food and stuff for that themselves as well. But they just offer thank you food to the people who help with the move. For mortals it’s usually just one or two friends, not a whole pack though. That’s why she was surprised it was so many, rather than so few that were here at the apartment. I know she’s really grateful you guys are here though, even though she’s only pack adjacent.” Abigail hoped that maybe this could help bridge the gap between Taylor and her friends. She knew her roomie planned to stay in Knoxville and would need a roommate after her scholarships ended, and thought maybe a couple of her teammates would be perfect for that.

“Weird. Well, we’re giving her a proper denwarming. She’s your pack, so she’s basically ours. She cheers at the meets and stuff, when she can come, and I know her pack isn’t well-off so she works. We get it. It just sucks she’s not really around enough to have formed strong bonds, you know?” Samantha had always been more empathetic to Taylor, knowing her own pack didn’t have a lot, so she’d had jobs herself all though high school. She hoped that meant that maybe she had a jobpack, since it kept her from forming bonds at school the way others did.

-

“Told you we’d have no problem getting it all into our trucks.” Garrett said as he put his box in to the bed of his truck and then the one she had carried.  
Taylor shook her head at the smug tone as she unlocked her car. She couldn't blame him for being smug since the pack been right and saved her the dreaded conversation that came with asking her parents for money. She'd been more than a little unsure, and had suggested renting a moving truck even just for a couple hours to Abigail. The wolves in earshot had all thought she was nuts.  
She was, however, still a little frustrated that they wouldn't let her pay them the little bit she could. She knew that was mostly down to her pride. After having worked so hard to build her life from the ground up and show her father she could stand on her own two feet with no help from them, anything that could be taken as charity or pity tended to chafe at her. She'd had to mentally remind herself more than once that this wasn't a big deal to the mostly wolf team. This was just what they did for friends or apparently friends of friends, with the only expectation being some help in return if called upon and maybe some snacks.  
So instead Taylor had taken the money and bought a large case of water for them to break into along with the pizza. She'd bake as well once she had everything moved over, the cookie dough already sitting in her fridge ready to be scooped out. It would stretch her food budget for the month thin, but she had to do something to thank them and hopefully the cookies would be enough. They'd probably be appreciated either way, the sweet tooth of wolves being well known to her from the cafe.  
-

“Where even is this place?” Salvador asked as they got in the car, glad that Abigail and Taylor weren’t at the aquatic center to take offence. “I’ve never even heard of that street.”  
“Must be in the mortal sector.” Kellie said, plugging the address into the gps. “I mean, did you expect anything else?”  
“No.” Salvador admitted with a sigh. “Hey, do you think it’s weird we’re not moving anyone else?”  
“Maybe she’s still trying to find more roommates or their lease isn’t up yet.” Kellie shrugged. “Mortals are weird sometimes. Taylor more than most.”

“Have you ever seen her with anyone but Abigail?”  
“Not really.” Kellie said after a moment. “I just figured maybe more of her friends went to UT or were mortals nearby.”  
“You’d think we’d have met them though, since Abigail would be in their friendpack too.”  
-

“Hey, Sal, aren’t we getting near Packloss Park?” Kellie asked worriedly, seeing how close they were to the grey buildings.  
Turn right in 500 feet.   
“No, not near it.” Salvador said before turning and frowning as the gps said to continue straight for a couple of miles and then arrive at their destination. “I’m pretty sure we’re actually going there.”  
“What?!” Kellie yelled.  
-  
“Maybe it’s not that bad inside. Maybe it’s been renovated and they can’t do much about all the exterior concrete.” Kellie said optimistically, even though she didn’t believe it herself. No one really chose to live in Packloss Park if they didn’t have other options for a reason. Well, except the out of town freshmen who didn’t know any better but that usually didn’t last longer than a semester.  
“Yeah, definitely.” Salvador agreed, not believing it either. Maybe it was better for mortals? But none of their mortal friends lived there either. The precast concrete building looked every bit of it’s 40 years and as univiting as it ever had. “Probably a mountain cabin away from the mountains inside.”  
It didn’t get any better as they walked in. The floor was as concrete as everything else and the lights were harsh and almost industrial looking. Sharing a look at the Out of Order sign on the elevator, they headed to the stairwell. “What apartment number?”  
“313.”  
-  
Opening the front door, they both winced. It was even worse than they thought. Looking around, the noticed the cheap carpet and it was as thin as they thought stepping onto it. The entry area and kitchen seemed to be some sort of linoleum that looked even more out of date than it actually was. Combined with the sterile white walls, it felt cold and barren. The only thing that looked remotely natural was the brick fireplace and wooden mantle and they were both sure that was brick facing and veneer over some sort of plyboard.  
“Oh moon, it’s even worse than I thought.” Salvador gasped.  
“Maybe the bedrooms are better?” Kellie tried to be optimistic, heading down the small hall.

“Not even you are optimistic enough to think that, Kells.” Lucille said, walking out from the bedroom with a clipboard in hand, “Hey, I know we aren’t meant to be moving anyone else but does Taylor have a mate?”  
“Are you kidding? I’m pretty sure the entire school would have known if Taylor Swift of all people found a mate.” Salvador replied, feeling a touch guilty for it even as he said it. Sure Taylor was reserved, but she’d always been nice to them when she’d come to a swimmeet and Abigail had been friends with her for years. She couldn’t be as bad as some assumed she was. Still, he doubted the most noted reclusive mortal on campus could have a mate and no one would talk about it.

“Why?” Kellie asked, walking over to the doorway. 

Lucille sighed and mentally counted down. At least she wouldn’t have to be the one to say it.  
“There’s only one bedroom?!” Kellie said, returning from the hall looking stricken. “And I don’t think she’s going to be sharing given the size of her bed and the size of her room. We can’t let her move here. No one deserves to live in Packloss Park alone. Why would Abigail let her do that?”  
Salvador paled at the idea a bit, unable to imagine being in such a depressing den and then also having no one. “I don’t think Abigail wanted her to move out, maybe this is why.”  
“I know new mates can be a bit obnoxious to live with sometimes, but this is still extreme. She could have found another roommate. Hell, me and my roommate can move things around in our dorm den and squeeze a third mattress in there, even if it wouldn’t be her original one. That has to be better than this.” Kellie said, gesturing wildly at the cold space.  
“If Abigail couldn’t talk her out of it, do you really think we could?” Salvador asked rhetorically. “Why wouldn’t Abi tell us Taylor was moving to Packloss Park? I mean, we could have come over after practices or on weekends and done something to make this better. She’s moving in today, we can’t even paint.”  
“No, but we can try to do something to make it better.” Lucille said determinedly, pulling out her phone. “Ask Abi what Taylor’s favourite scent is.”  
“Why? What are you doing?” Salvador asked, even as he listened. A favourite scent wouldn’t do much but it was at least something.  
“Texting for back up. Abigail said she didn’t have that much stuff.” Lucille said.

“She doesn’t. It’s kinda weird even for struggling packs.” Kellie said.

“And if they slow down the packing and moving process and we have more help, I’m pretty sure we can make this place a little better.” Lucille continued, ignoring the interruption, “We aren’t going to be able to paint but I’m pretty sure we can clean the place better than the property manager had done, maybe even get a couple of the stains out and restore the linoleum a bit.”

-

“You ready to head over?” Samantha asked, closing the tailgate. “They'll handle getting everything down here and ready for the next load. I think we can get it done in another trip or two.”

Samantha made sure to keep her tone casual, but more than one of the swimpack had shared looks at how little stuff Taylor actually had. They knew they were used to moving entire dens and not one mortal's collection of stuff but it still didn't seem much to them. Especially given the amount of stuff Abigail seemed to have and how much they'd moved for Matt. They weren't sure though if Taylor was just a minimalist or had different tastes than Abigail or Matt and wanted to start fresh.

Taylor wasn't sure what she expected at her new flat, but it certainly wasn't to walk in and find it almost sparkling. The carpets looked cleaner than she'd thought they could get and tarps and cardboard had been laid out into safe walkways. The kitchen counter looked spotless and like it had probably been scrubbed within an inch of its life. Even the walls looked brighter. As she walked a bit further, she noticed the brick exterior around the fireplace had been well scrubbed too and it looks like they'd even done the patio. And...was that pumpkin spice she smelled?  
“You guys!” Taylor exclaimed, looking around and one of the wolves stepped forward to grab the box from her and carry it to the kitchen. “You didn't have to do all this! This is way too much!”  
“It was no big deal.” Salvador shook his head, and set his checklist to the side. “This is your home and we wanted to make sure your den was set up for you.”  
“Why don't you start unpacking the kitchen?” Kellie suggested, knowing it was the heart of any den. “You can tell Salvador where everything goes and he'll help while we start bringing everything in.”  
Figuring it would let her start getting the cookies in the oven if nothing else, and knowing she'd be more in the way than helpful carrying everything up the flights of stairs, Taylor agreed and let herself be shepherded into the kitchen finding the pumpkin spice source to be a candle burning on the counter.  
She quickly found the box with the cookie sheets in it, and after a bit of a search also found the one with silverware. As soon as the wolves saw what she was doing, they were more than happy to let her scoop while placing the rest of the contents of the boxes where Taylor indicated. It didn't take long for the trucks to be unloaded, and Salvador turned to Darrell and told him to go back for the next load.  
“This is it.” He shrugged. He was surprised too, but it wasn't his place to judge.  
“But, there's no dining set? There's only one sofa? You're sure?” Lucille was almost beside herself. She knew mortals were different, but she had enough mortal friends to know this wasn’t normal for them. She really needed to talk to Abigail.  
“I'm sure.”  
Lucille was pleased to catch Abigail on the stairs. “You know her style, right?” 

Abigail nodded. 

“Good. My uncle has a warehouse full of cast off furniture for folks rebuilding after fires and the like. I'm sure he has some of the things she needs, and she can't object if they're free, right?”  
Abigail couldn't help but snort. Taylor would object purely because they were free, though as politely as she could while still trying to make sure it was clear she was grateful for the gesture. Seeing the look she was getting and not wanting to worsen Taylor's reputation, Abigail explained, “She's as proud as any alpha when it comes to that sort of thing.”  
The wolves in earshot shared looks at that. Well, that did explain the lack of stuff they'd moved and Taylor's insistence of trying to feed them.  
“Hmmm. Is that a weird mortal thing?” Lucille couldn't understand it. Most wolves would be thrilled to get some items for free, especially if they were setting up a new den.  
“I guess you could say that. There's a weird stigma amongst some mortals against accepting what they see as charity when they think others might need it more. So, Taylor would see the free furniture and say 'but the families who lost everything need it more than me, because I have SOME stuff and they have nothing.'” Abigail knew that kind of selflessness, at least, would resonate with the wolves.  
“Ohhhh. So she'd feel like she was taking it away from someone else. That explains so much. What if we say it's a den-warming gift from all of us? The team is big enough it wouldn't cost much per individual if we were paying, and we're not. Especially if we say the mates chipped in as well?” Now that Lucille understood better why Taylor wouldn't accept the gift, given that alpha pride was real and selflessness for the good of the pack or community was certainly valued amongst wolves as well, it made her even more determined to help the mortal furnish her apartment with what she thought of as the bare necessities.  
“I think that has a better shot than anything else. I was already dreading trying to convince her to let Matt and I get her a few things.” Abigail said, fondly shaking her head at Taylor's stubbornness. “The cookies should keep her distracted for a bit longer at least.”

“Maybe we can start the denwarming a little early?” Garrett offered. “We can tell everyone to come over and hopefully that'll help distract her while you pick out some nice den warming gifts?”  
“That has an even better chance of working. Especially if you actually let her help set up.” Abigail said wryly, knowing Taylor would jump into feeding the pack even if she wasn't paying for all of it. She'd heard enough about and tagged along to enough swimpack parties to know and accept everyone chipped in for that sort of thing.  
“Then we have a game plan.” Salvador said, grabbing a couple others to help while everyone else stayed behind to help unpack and make Taylor's new den as cozy as possible.  
Looking up and noticing a few people leaving including Abigail, Taylor asked, “What's going on?”  
“They decided to go get the grill and a few things and make it a proper den warming party.” One of the wolves nearby said, having been told to distract the mortal lest she get suspicious.  
“You guys don't have to do that. You've already done so much.” Taylor said, concerned they'd think she was taking advantage.  
“It's tradition.” Darrell assured. “We did the same when Abi moved in with Matt, remember?”  
“Well, who am I to argue with tradition?” Taylor said, noticing everyone seemed happier she'd accepted it. She also noticed a few of the wolves eyeing the spoons and bowl she'd used to portion out the cookie dough. Smiling fondly at the familiarity of that, and how some things went across species, Taylor set them on the counter and laughed as some of the wolves began jostling each other out of the way for the treats.  
With all of the pack helping, Taylor was able to quickly get things unpacked and even start to feel pretty organized. She was beginning to wonder where exactly they'd gone to get the grill and stuff for the den-warming, as it seemed they'd been gone quite a while for her to have accomplished so much, even with help. The cookies were all finished, and she was pleased she'd made so many, given that the entire pack AND their mates were coming to celebrate, apparently. Several mortals had come up to assure her that this was part of the experience and that the pack would be quite offended if she DIDN'T let them give her a den warming, so she knew she might as well enjoy it. She gave Matt some of the cash she'd planned on using for pizza and told him to go get drinks and chips for the mortals who wouldn't be fully satisfied with meat alone. She realized that the grill must finally have arrived along with the meat when she began to smell something delicious coming from the ground level outside her apartment.  
She was still surprised not to see Abigail back and wondered if she was helping out at the grill. She didn't think she'd missed her coming back. Just as she was about to call her, she came through the front door. Matt and a couple of the team were following with ice and drinks and tubs. Someone had thought to get plastic cups and paper plates and some larger bowls for the chips and a bag of salad mix one of the more health conscious mortals had insisted on getting.  
Before she could go to help, she realized more people were coming through the door. Was that a dining table? Why had they brought that? And were those end tables? She was pretty sure there was also a rug and she noticed more of the wolves behind them waiting to get through the door. “What's going on?”  
“Happy Den Warming!” The shout was echoed by all the wolves and most of the mortals as well.  
Abigail knew she had to be the one to explain this if Taylor was going to accept it, so she stepped up. “It's part of the tradition. Anytime a pack helps one of their own move, they also help fill in whatever is missing from the new home. They're not new or anything since everyone only chipped in a little, but they're clean, and they match your furniture, and if you don't just say thank you and start pouring drinks, you'll offend them.” That last bit was said under her breath, and Abigail hoped no one around her could hear. The wolves would agree it was part of the den warming tradition and just figure only the inner pack or whatever was part of the 'everyone' who chipped in and let it go that they hadn't paid in themselves. But they WOULD think it was odd if Taylor protested too hard.  
“Wow, guys, I don't know what to say. You've all been so much help today, I can't begin to thank you enough for that. The chair even goes with my sofa! It's way too much, but Abigail assures me this is just how you all do things, so thank you, so much. Please grab drinks, and I imagine the kitchen will soon be filled with enough meat to feed all of us and most of the building.” Taylor blushed at the end of her thank you. It was really, really sweet of them to get her these things, but really, why? She'd barely talked to most of them before this morning. Some of them she still hadn't really talked to. And they'd pitched in to furnish her apartment? It was crazy.  
When she'd picked out the apartment, she'd never imagined it being filled with this many people. Still, she couldn't deny it was nice even if it was overwhelming. Were all wolf parties like this?  
Despite her temptation to shrink back from all of it and just observe, she knew she owed them too much to do that. Even though it was more socializing than she'd done in the last three years, Taylor did her best to make a point to thank each person, either for coming or for helping her move. She didn't realize the impact the gesture was making on the wolves and mates, some of whom had only shown up for Taylor Swift's den warming as a gesture of goodwill towards Abigail or the swimpack. Nor did she see the speculative looks whenever someone noticed her occasionally duck out onto the patio for a breather from socializing with Matt and Abigail usually quick to make an appearance at her side.

By the time it all wound down, she felt thoroughly wrung out. She didn’t think there was a team member or their mate she hadn’t talked to. And while it had been fun, she was grateful when the last wolf left and even more so when Abigail and Matt reluctantly followed. She loved them both and Abigail was one of the rare few she could spend a length of time with and not end up feeling exhausted and overexposed, but they need to stop fretting. The one upside was her flat was still clean after the party. Everyone had been good about leaving the place livable, but she recalled they’d done the same when Matt had moved in.

She had wondered if the apartment might feel too empty or cold without Abby and Matt there but after such a long day she was glad to flop onto her bed in blissful silence. The boxes of her clothes and personal items could wait. Right now all she wanted was a hot shower and to get changed into a pair of sweats....in a minute...as soon as she felt like moving.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not entirely happy with this chapter, but it was delaying this too long so here it is in it's current state. I imagine this story will go through a rewrite anyway at some point once it's finished. Hopefully the next update will be quicker?


	4. The Third Meeting and The Date

This is it! I’m going to go inside, walk up to her, and ask her out. Karlie thought as she approached the library doors. She could almost hear Kristine snort in response, and had to suppress a growl at the thought.

She knew she couldn’t back out this time, not after swearing up and down she’d finally do it. Her friends and sisters would never let her live it down if she chickened out of asking Taylor out again. Not after she’d spent the last few days trying and failing to subtly ask about her. It still amazed her that all anyone seemed to know was that the pretty mortal was smart but kept to herself, never going to parties or hanging out on the quad with friends. A few people had said they’d heard rumours she was stuck up but Mike had told her he helped her move yesterday and she was nice enough. Even bought everyone water and soda and made cookies after they refused to let her pay them. That had spiraled into a discussion of mortals and their weird customs. She’d have never guessed that mortals considered helping a packmate move a major favor or that they usually threw their own denwarmings. She’d know they were different, but the ways they were different and the degree still took her aback sometimes. Moon only knew how much soothing she’d have to do if she’d ever insulted a packmate by trying to pay them like an employee or throw her own denwarming.

Even Kristine had only been able to tell her was she didn’t come off as a lycanphobe and always pulled her weight in projects and was nice enough. Karlie was still surprised that was all she knew given they’d shared a few classes. She really did keep to herself if even her slightly meddlesome big sister knew so little about her..

Karlie took a deep breath before walking inside and heading for the stairs. Normally she’d take the elevator and deal with the brief discomfort for the convenience but today she wanted the extra time to settle herself. She wasn’t sure what it was about Taylor that set her so off her game. She was an alpha, for moon’s sake. She’d courted her fair share of omegas, though there were a few betas in her history and even one alpha. That had been an interesting night. Sure there was a degree of fun in battling for control as their instincts urged them to, but she couldn’t imagine a lifetime of it. She imagined it’d get exhausting quickly. Maybe it was just Taylor was mortal? She’d never courted one before. None had ever caught her eye the same way an omega did. Or maybe it was just Taylor? Even after their first conversation, Karlie had known she was different. Smarter than most people she’d met and as nice as anyone but there was a wall there, a guarded nature that she hadn’t expected and some part of her found challenging. The more she spoke to Taylor, the more she wanted to know who the blonde was when her walls came down and she let someone know her fully.

Sooner than she was ready for, she found herself just steps from the study table they seemed to have claimed as theirs. Setting both coffees down on the table, she hoped Taylor was fine with plain coffee instead of anything fancy. All college students lived off coffee right? It seemed the safest option and she’d been raised better than to do this empty handed. She has even double checked to make sure to grab some creamers and sugar packets before she left the cafe.

“Hey!” Taylor smiled at her, looking up from her notes. She watched Taylor glance at the coffee before looking at her concerned. Why was she concerned? “Is it a two coffee sort of day?”

“Oh....no. It’s for you?” Karlie hated the way her voice lilted at the end, making it sound more like a question. “I hope plain coffee is okay? I wasn’t sure what your usual was. I have cream and sugar too.”

“That’s so sweet! Thank you!” Karlie wondered if she was physically preening at the way Taylor smiled at her before taking the cup. Food was usually a safe bet and Taylor had reacted well to the cookies she’d brought yesterday and offered to “share” but you just never knew. She still thought it was adorable when she thought about the way the other woman blushed as she apologized for eating most of them. Like Karlie hadn’t baked them for her.

“Oh, I snagged this for you this morning when I got here! I wasn’t sure if you were going to be here today but when they said it was still available...” Taylor reached over and took out the book she’d been hiding in her bag. Homo Sapien vs Homo Lykonis.

“You’re a lifesaver.” Karlie grinned. She’d gotten about as far as she could without it in her reading. She wasn’t sure what the school was thinking, having only 2 copies in the library when it was such a popular class. Even the bookstore still had them on backorder. She’d been pretty much resigned when she asked before coming over and found both copies had already been checked out. But she’d had practice and couldn’t get there earlier. It was sweet, that Taylor had even thought to do that for her.

Even now that she had the much sought after book, Karlie could barely concentrate on her studying. She was pretty sure this was the fifth time she’d read the same paragraph over and over as she and Taylor chatted occasionally. She felt her window of opportunity slipping away with each tick of the second hand and was dreading going back to the den and having to admit she’d missed another chance.

“Would you go out with me?” She didn’t even realize she’d blurted it out as Taylor was packing up until the other woman stared at her like that. Oh moon, was she straight? She was so sure after the rumours about Agron but maybe she’d also said no because she didn’t swing that way? But everyone said they’d been flirting for a couple weeks before that. She was still staring. Maybe she’d been too abrupt? She’d been too abrupt. Smooth, Kloss. Very charming. Very alpha. How could she ever resist?

“What?” Taylor asked after a long moment. She’d thought at first she’d misheard the brunette. Or that maybe she was joking. But Karlie seemed to be waiting for a response and looked nervous so maybe she had heard her right...

Karlie took a deep breath. This was it. “Would you like to go out with me? I was thinking maybe lunch? But if you’d rather do something else that’s fine too.”

“You’re serious?” Taylor asked. 

Karlie nodded. Why Taylor was so surprised? She’d been so textbook. Taking the initiative? Offerings? One on one time to see if there was potential chemistry? Check, check, and check.

“Yes. I’d like that. When?” Taylor asked, finally. Karlie wondered if her sigh of relief was audible. She hoped not but she wasn’t sure. She knew she hadn’t been breathing for a moment there.

Shit, she hadn’t planned for that. That was such an obvious question too. For the moon’s sake, she was such an idiot. “Tomorrow? Are you free then?”

“Tomorrow then.” Taylor agreed, and Karlie had to resist the urge to fist pump. That might look weird. “Maybe we could meet in the quad?”

“Is 11:00 too early?” Karlie asked. That would give her enough time to shower after her long practice and jog across campus. As long as no one said anything stupid again at least.

“11:00 is fine. See you then?” Karlie could only nod and try to contain herself until Taylor was out of sight.

“Yes!” Being shushed from a couple aisles over did nothing to dim her smile. She had a date to plan! And sisters to shut up, Karlie thought smugly. They wouldn’t be able to give her a hard time now. Preening slightly, and being grateful no one was around to see it, she packed up. How had they ever doubted her?

-

As soon as Taylor got back to her apartment, she texted Abigail. Karlie Kloss was incredibly attractive, an athlete, and, rumor had it, one of the stronger coders in the comp sci department. She certainly hadn’t been expecting that to be the jock’s hobby but apparently she was really into it, given it wasn’t even her major. And Karlie asked her out! She'd been so surprised that Karlie wanted to go out with her, she'd been caught completely off guard. But now that she'd said yes, she was a little nervous. Dating Karlie would have been intimidating, frankly, with even one of those things. But that was a lot, all together. She just hoped she didn't do or say anything too embarrassing. She hoped Abigail might know something more about her because they were both athletes and sometimes the teams hung out. She hadn't wanted to say anything before, knowing the redhead would get her hopes up. But now that there was a date...

Abigail had come right over, thrilled that her best friend was coming out of her shell enough to go on an actual date. It was one of the reasons she thought Matt may be the one, that he’d just waited patiently as she’d squealed and bounced and said “oh my god” more times than he probably thought could ever be necessary before she’d explained. And then just smiled and said to let him know if she was going to be home for dinner or going to eat with Taylor, not even grumbling about probably canceling their planned date. Then again, maybe he thought Taylor needed to get out as badly as she did. 

Even though she'd thought turning down Dianna was for the best, given she had a reputation for being a player, even for a werewolf, she secretly somewhat wished Taylor had been brave enough to go for it just because she needed to get out that badly. Her friend could have used a bit of fun, if there wasn't the risk of her heart getting involved with the actress. She knew there were things with Taylor's family she didn't like to talk about that held her back. Taylor must really have liked Karlie to go out on a limb and on this date. Abigail didn't know much about Karlie though. Despite both of them being on an athletic team, their paths hadn't crossed much. Even though they had a mated pair and a set of littermates between the two teams, it wasn't easy to arrange a hang out for THAT many people with different schedules, packbonds or no. She'd mostly just seen her around at a few parties. She really only knew the same pieces of her reputation that Taylor already did. 

Still, she was thrilled to go over what little she did know once she’d rushed over. It was fun helping her best friend hunt through her closet for an outfit that was special enough for a first date but casual enough for lunch, lounging on her bed while Taylor held up different options and gushed about the couple of times she’d studied with the wolf. Hopefully this went well, or even if it didn’t, gave Taylor the confidence to try with someone else. She was sure if she put out the word Taylor was finally looking, she’d have a line of women - wolf and mortal - at her door.

“I just can't believe she asked me out.” Taylor said, holding a shirt up to her body before shaking her head and casting it aside.

Now if only you could see it. Abigail sighed to herself, shaking her head slightly. Instead she just asked, “Why wouldn’t she?”

“Well, I mean, she's some kind of track star and gorgeous and probably pretty popular. I imagine she could have her pick.” Taylor shrugged. “I'm just...me.”

“And just you is pretty awesome. Come on, Taylor. Everyone really enjoyed getting to know you at the den-warming. I know you've held yourself back from making friends, though I'm still not sure I get why. But once people get to know you, they like you. Apparently Karlie included.” Abigail sighed. She knew Taylor's family was responsible for her reluctance to get close to anyone. She knew she was Taylor's closest friend and even still there were walls the blonde just couldn't seem to let down. She just didn't know how help her get past that and hoped Karlie might have more success than she had over the years.

“I mean, I haven't heard about her being with anyone seriously - wolf or mortal. And I know not everyone dates a lot in college. Look at the wolves - they usually don't unless they've mated or more rarely are trying to mate with a mortal! And gods know there are enough mortal commitment-phobes on campus.” Taylor said.

“They call it courting and you know it's about more than sex.” Abigail reminded, not wanting to get into Taylor's own very mortal issues with bonds.

“All I'm saying is what if she's like Dianna? She seemed perfectly nice until you told me she just likes being mortals' first wolf and there was some sort of bet on if I'd let her fuck me.” Taylor said, not sure if her own judgement was trustworthy after she'd almost called it so wrong. Even now, she winced a little at the memory. She still wasn't sure how high the pot had gotten, but she had heard it was getting up there. Apparently a lot more people than she ever thought possible had opinions on her sex life. It was pretty disturbing, actually, if she let herself think about it too long.

“I haven’t heard any rumors like that about Karlie, but there are a couple of people on the swim team that have mates on the track team. They might know her better than I do. I could ask?” Abigail wanted Taylor to feel confident going into this date, and if that would help, she was willing. 

“No. Everyone knew the rumors about Dianna. I mean, everyone who talked to anyone anyway. If you haven’t heard anything bad about Karlie then she’s at least not some sort of fuckboy, trying to add notches to her bedpost. But why would she ask ME?” Taylor really liked her, but she just didn’t feel like there was any reason Karlie would like her back.

“Because you’re pretty, you’re smart, and she’s enjoyed talking to you. I know Dianna shook your trust, but you know most people aren’t like her. Most of the people on campus just want to find their own mates, wolf or mortal. Just like we do. I mean, it’s hard to not want to in a place like this. So if she asked you out, she thinks there’s a chance the two of you might belong together, right? Worth getting to know her, anyway, to see if that’s something you’d want?” 

Taylor smiled. “Right. I do want that. Do you really think that could happen? That we could actually work?”

Abigail grinned back. “For sure. You’re amazing. You’d make a great girlfriend or mate for anyone, Tay. Karlie’s just the first one both smart enough to see it and confident enough to act on her interest.”

“Confident enough?” Taylor asked.

“You have looked in a mirror, right?” Abigail asked, amused but not surprised Taylor didn’t see it. “Add in the fact you’re so smart it’s scary and funny when you get to know someone and one of the nicest people I know? I can see where some people would be a bit too intimidated to say something. Though that’s their loss because you’re kind of a catch. If I swung that way..”

“Shut up!” Taylor laughed, throwing the closest pillow at her friend. “But thanks, Abigail. Ohmigod. I’m going on a date!”

Taylor was giddy all night, replaying in her mind every time they'd interacted in the library. She wondered what it was that made Karlie ask her out. They didn't really hang out in the same circles. Karlie seemed to have a large circle of friends where Taylor really just had Abigail. Maybe Matt, sort of, but that was mostly through Abigail. She hadn't actually spoken to the brunette before she'd sat next to her in the library. They still didn't know each other that well. Karlie knew she was friends with Abigail and had moved to Knoxville from Nashville and worked in the diner and Taylor knew Karlie ran track and had sisters, one of which also went to the school, and her entire family lived in town. It wasn't much to go on, she thought.

Though I guess that's the purpose of a date. Taylor thought wryly.

-

She said yes! Karlie mentally cheered again as she entered the restaurant. She knew she needed to calm down but couldn’t help it. Something about Taylor had her intrigued and she was more than a little excited for the chance to get to know her better. Still, if she didn’t bring it down a couple notches, she knew her team was likely to give her hell over acting like a pup who’d just asked their crush out for the first time. She loved them, most of the time, but did not want to spend the entire team lunch getting ragged on.

“You look happy.” Guy commented, watching as Karlie seemed to move with barely restrained energy. More than she should have given how hard Coach had worked them. Knowing it had to be something more, he dryly asked, “Finally get that book?”

“And a date!” Karlie almost preened again but just managed to stop herself.

“Pretty library girl said yes?” Shawn asked curiously, knowing his ears hadn’t been the only ones who’d perked up. None of them had been surprised Karlie had been running late. Her running late thanks to a girl wasn’t even a huge shock. But that it could be over the infamously introverted Taylor Swift? That got heads turning.

“It's Karlie. Was there any doubt?” Angelina pointed out teasingly. She knew a few of them were still on thin ice with her after the last time Taylor had come up. Not that she blamed Karlie in the slightest. They'd been out of line. But the tension in the locker room was starting to effect their teambond, thus Coach treating them to a barbeque lunch at Lobo's. “Where are you taking her?”

“I was thinking about that cafe. Not to far from campus.” Karlie said as she filled her plate. “The food is good and it's walking distance so I don't have to ask my dad for the car.”

“That's a good choice.” Guy said. “They have a lot of mortal-friendly options. Not like here where it's all a family style carnivore special.”

Kalie nodded, glad her idea was a good one. Just before she took her first bite, a thought came into her head. “Hey, it's mortal walking distance too right?”

“Yeah, it's close enough as long as she doesn't wear heels.” Alice said after a moment, hoping it'd be enough to start to thaw the ice between her and Karlie. She may not particularly like Swift, but not so little she was willing to give up the team bonds for her.

“Okay, cool. I thought so, but...I’ve never courted a mortal before. I want to do this right. Any advice?” Karlie was pretty sure it was just a longer version of courting an omega, but she didn’t want to do something horrifically lyconic and mess up her chances before they even got to the end of the first date.

“Just take it slow,” Guy suggested. “Let her lead. Consent is huge with mortals, especially mortal women, but if she likes you, then she’ll be into it when the time is right. Look at you, all big strong alpha and gone giddy over a mortal. It’s cute, actually.”

Karlie chuckled. She knew they weren’t wrong. She WAS weirdly in over her head with Taylor, in the best possible way. She was pleased when the pack devolved into sharing stories of their own times courting with the other species, taking the focus off her and her date. Many of the stories were funny, and even though they often included gaffes caused by the differences in mortal and wolf culture, none appeared to have been fatal, either for the one committing the faux pas or the relationship itself. All of the ones that had ended, had done so for the same reason most wolf or interspecies relationships did - they simply weren’t mates. Even Coach Peters had chimed in, recalling a story from his teens about when he'd unknowingly asked out a vegan mortal and had blurted out “is that even healthy?” when she explained her diet. She felt better about her chances when she left the group, putting an extra spring in her step as she half walked, half skipped back to her den.

-

Tracy heard the door open, banging into the wall once again, but before she had time to get past ‘oh moon, now what?’ she heard her second oldest apologize to it, which made her chuckle. The tone of her pup’s voice made it clear she was in a much better mood this time around, slamming doors out of enthusiasm and the fact she often forgot her own strength rather than a desire to rip the heads off a few of her teampack. 

“Hey Mom!” Karlie pulled her dam into a hug. “What time does dad get home tonight?”

Yes, Tracy thought, her pup was VERY happy about something. “Dinner is at six-thirty, why? If you had a tail right now I'm pretty sure it would have taken out half the kitchen wagging.” 

“Um, I just had a REALLY good day, okay? I'll tell you about it at dinner.” Karlie kissed her dam's cheek. “For now...study time!” 

Tracy shook her head at the thunder of Karlie’s feet ascending the stairs. Even grown, her daughter was still very much a pup at heart.

-

“Mom says to come down for dinner,” Kariann chuckled when her older sister jumped a mile. Whatever she was reading for class must have been pretty engrossing, she didn’t even have headphones on and had still missed her sister approaching. She wondered if it would have been better or worse to try Kimby’s usual method of just bellowing “DINNER” from the common room.

“Shit, you scared me! Okay, I’ll be down in a second.” Karlie stuck a post-it where she was leaving off so she wouldn’t forget her place and capped her highlighter. Now that she was maybe dating a mortal, all the ways traits affected them differently than wolves were even more interesting than she’d thought it would be, and she’d been excited to take the course in the first place. She could already tell it was going to be her favorite of the term, even though her teampack liked to joke that her favorite should be life-drawing. She supposed that might have been her favorite if she possessed any artistic talent, but as it was, any joy over the nude models was overshadowed by the fact she was never going to remotely capture what any of them actually looked like. 

She found it hard to concentrate on the stories from her pack at dinner, her brain circling back to the fact she was taking Taylor to lunch the next day drowned out even the interesting cases her Dad had seen in the ER. She tried to tune in while her sisters talked about their days at school, knowing how important those little details were to maintaining a strong pack, but it was definitely a struggle. She kept forgetting to pass things, even after second and third requests, until her sire finally suggested they all put her out of her misery and let her talk about what had CLEARLY been an interesting day.

“Wha, huh? Oh, yeah, um, I went to practice and the library and we had a team lunch, then I came home to study.” Now that it was her turn, Karlie wanted to milk this for a moment.

“So, which one of those made you so happy you apologized to the front door for accidentally banging it into the wall when you opened it?” Tracy wasn’t letting her get away with the rest of the pack not knowing about that one.

Karlie blushed as her sisters laughed. “Library. I finally got that book I needed for my genetics class.”

“Yes. Getting the textbook you need for class is always super exciting.” Kristine rolled her eyes. If that was all it was, her sister needed more joy in her life.

“Oh. And I asked Taylor out and she said yes and we’re going to lunch at the cafe tomorrow. Pass the chicken?” Karlie fought hard not to smirk. Three...two...one.

“Pass the chicken?!” Kimby was the first to react. Karlie wasn’t surprised. “You finally ask out Taylor and not only wait this long to tell us BUT don’t even give us details?!”

“You want details?” Karlie asked innocently. “Does that mean I can’t have more chicken?”

“Karlie Elizabeth, stop winding your sisters up.” Tracy cut in, knowing her youngest pup was moments away from making some sort of dramatic threat. It had nothing to do with her own slight annoyance her middle pup had waited so long to tell them and decided to do so in a way she knew would drive them crazy. Nothing at all.

“She was actually the one who helped me get that book I needed. I stopped to get coffee for us and when I got there she was already at the table, and she told me she had something for me too and it was the book. That's a good sign, right?” She waited for general nodding before continuing. “And then we studied for a while and as she was packing up, um, I kinda blurted out 'do you want to go on a date with me' and she seemed surprised and asked me to repeat it but when I did she said she wanted to, so, yeah, I'm taking her to the cafe tomorrow.” Karlie grinned, she was so excited to take Taylor out and it showed. More than any other time she'd courted an omega. 

-

10:49, one minute since you last looked. Taylor scolded herself, putting her phone back in her bag. She'd been too anxious to wait any longer in her apartment and had thought the walk to the quad would eat up more time. It didn't. Instead she was left waiting for her date and having flashbacks to middle school when she'd been asked out as a truth or dare joke by her crush and then stood up. She really hoped Karlie didn't stand her up. She didn't seem like the type, but Taylor hadn't realized her first crush was either until 3 hours later.

Before Taylor could get any further down memory lane, she looked up at the sound of approaching footsteps and smiled before she even realized it at the sight of her date lightly jogging towards her. Her smile widened, seeing Karlie had dressed up a little for their date. She was still just wearing jeans, but her top was cute instead of just athletic, and she'd worn her hair down. This mattered to her too. At least a bit.

“Oh my god. I should have warned you, I'm literally always late for everything. Were you waiting long?” Karlie's breathing was barely harder than normal, Taylor mused, despite the jog.

She glanced at her phone. 10:55. She wasn't even late. “No, not that long. I should probably warn you. I'm early to everything. But today, so were you!” Taylor held up the phone so Karlie could see the time. Karlie glanced at the time, but found herself lingering a little longer on the lock screen. It looked like a recent photo of Taylor and redhead she presumed was Abigail at the beach. Maybe from this summer? Or spring break? While her friend was pretty, it took a moment for Karlie to drag her eyes away from Taylor in her bathing suit. It wasn't even that revealing, but Taylor looked gorgeous in the 50s style suit.

“Amazing!” Karlie blushed, realizing she may have zoned out for a second. “I was thinking about walking to this cafe just off campus? It's better than the cafeteria, and it's not that far. I thought I could treat you to a step up.”

Now it was Taylor's turn to blush. Karlie's treat. She was torn between relief and a pang of guilt for that relief. It wasn't fair that the younger woman kept treating her and she'd yet to return the favour.

“Sure, that sounds nice.” Taylor mentally congratulated herself on the choice of flats for the date. She'd eyed a pair of heels she rarely wore but decided that the likelihood of tripping, breaking a heel, or breaking her ankle was high. Karlie was attractive enough she thought there was a chance she'd forget how feet worked. She liked walking places. Saved on gas, which was expensive. And now she was going to get to walk side-by-side with a very attractive girl who actually showed up for their date.

They chatted a bit on the way over, small talk, like major, and favorite movies, and hobbies. The little things that people talk about when they're just starting out on a friendship. But they found they had some choices in common. They both loved the same local band that played just off campus, and marveled that they'd never run into each other at a show. Taylor had seen Karlie there, surrounded by her teammates, while she hung out at the back, hoping not to be noticed while she awkwardly danced to the music. They'd both fallen in love with the same book series, about a not so distant dystopian future where a girl not unlike them saved her community by uniting the mortals and werewolves. Taylor carefully steered the conversation back to Karlie's family, when the topic came up, after briefly mentioning she had a brother who went to another university and played football. It was much more interesting to hear stories about Karlie and her sisters and their antics.

Karlie found she was actually a little disappointed to reach the cafe. She knew mortals couldn't walk as far as wolves and it was about the time they normally ate, but she'd been enjoying the conversation and the nice day. She'd had worse dates than a walk with a pretty girl who was also interesting. She smiled when Taylor blushed and thanked her for getting the door. She wasn't sure why the blonde seemed to surprised by those sort of gestures, but she didn't dwell on it too much. Not when it made Taylor's eyes light up a little each time and made her blush so adorably. It only took a moment for them to reach the counter to order, having beat the lunch rush. 

“Do you know what you want?” Karlie asked while they waited for the person in front to order, both of them rolling their eyes as the hemmd and hawed. They each smiled slightly as they caught the other one doing the same. At least they had that pet peeve in common.

“The turkey club salad sounds good. And maybe an iced tea.” Taylor said after a moment.

Karlie nodded and to Taylor’s surprise, ordered for her when it was their turn, glancing at her to make sure she got it right before ordering her own. The guy at the counter didn’t seem to think anything of it though, not even blinking as he put in their order.

“Do you want to grab a table and I’ll get our food?” Karlie asked.

-

Taylor tried not to stare as Karlie set down their order. She’d heard her order “the works” without really looking at the menu but she it didn’t prepare her for the amount of meat and eggs on the plate in front of her date. It looked like at least a three egg omelette AND bacon AND a sizable ham steak. She didn’t think there was a vegetable on there. Was that even healthy?

Maybe she just needs the protein? Taylor thought. She’d seen Abigail carb load before a meet but she knew she also needed more protein than Taylor did. She is an athlete after all. Maybe she’s just doing a lot of training at the moment.

Karlie found herself unable to look away as Taylor poured dressing over her salad. She’d knew her date order the club salad but where was the turkey? There were only a handful of strips! She knew the diner was generous with their portions, and the size of the salad itself proved it. Maybe someone in the kitchen had forgotten the rest of the meat? She hadn’t really paid attention when she picked up the order, too occupied with juggling everything, or she would have said something. But Taylor didn’t seem to think anything was wrong.

“This is really good!” Taylor offered, after eating a few bites. “And it's such a huge salad. How's yours? You've been here before, right?” Taylor wondered if perhaps Karlie didn't know she'd ordered enough meat and eggs for an entire football team, having thought she'd get, you know, a regular amount of bacon and eggs. And it seemed they'd forgotten her toast. Didn't breakfast usually come with toast?

“It's really good. And yeah, I've been here before. This is my favorite, for breakfast, but they have some good burgers and stuff too. I can't believe you've never been before.” Karlie hoped maybe Taylor would take the hint that it would be okay to add on a burger to her salad. She suspected maybe her date was trying to be polite by ordering something inexpensive, but it was really not necessary for her to starve herself.

Taylor looked down, a little embarrassed. “I don't eat out much. It's expensive. I'm paying my way here, so...”

Karlie nodded encouragingly, wanting to reach out and take Taylor's hand, but unsure if they were there yet. “It's cool. I have an athletic scholarship, but I know tuition and books and stuff aren't cheap. Is that why you work at the diner?”

Taylor nodded, happy that Karlie didn't ask why her family wasn't helping. She didn't know a lot about Karlie's financial situation, but she suspected that Karlie's family had at least some money, even raising four girls. Hers did too....they just didn't want to share it, exactly, and Taylor didn't really want to have to explain that. Not on a first date, anyway. “Yeah. I've always had a passion for food, and the owners are awesome. It's a great place to work.”

“That’s cool. If I didn’t have scholarships and stuff, I’d probably get a job too. With four of us, even my dad’s salary means it would be tight if they had to pay for all of us to go to school somewhere. I don’t know if I could work in a diner though...I’d probably eat all the product!” Karlie mentally congratulated herself when Taylor laughed at her feeble attempt at a joke. Even if it hadn’t been that good, at least Taylor was trying to show appreciation.

“Where would you work, do you think?” Taylor was eager, as always, to put the focus back on Karlie. She was interesting, and smart, and she loved listening to her speak.

“They sometimes pay student assistants in the athletic training office, so maybe there if I could get it. Or the student technology help desk, although I would probably get into trouble for rolling my eyes at some of the, quote-unquote, problems people bring in.” Karlie noticed that Taylor chuckled at that too.

“My roommate freshman year thought her laptop died in the first week. She didn’t realize you had to charge them after a while.” Taylor laughed recalling the idiot the university had assigned her. She’d dropped out after first semester, and Taylor hadn’t minded having a single room at all, though she suspected that hadn’t done a lot for her reputation on campus.

“Holy shit, and she got in here!?” Karlie laughed too. How in the moon?

“Her dad, sire, has a wing of the English department named after his pack. The rest of them, apparently, got the smart end of the genetic stick. He wrote one of my favorite books I’ve read since I started here. I was really excited to have her as my roommate, actually, until I found out she got zero of his intelligence.” Taylor rolled her eyes.

Karlie smiled. Even THAT gesture was cute. And Taylor admired a lycan author. So, not lycanphobic, though Karlie had sort of known that, given the mortal wouldn’t have gone out with her if she was. It was nice to have further proof for the most reluctant of her teampack that she was simply as close to an omega as a mortal could get, if mortals didn’t have second genders. “Yikes. Being from a good pack, or family, doesn’t guarantee anything, huh?”

“Clearly not. Being from a not so great one doesn’t mean anything either, you know? It’s all about what matters to you and how hard you’re willing to work for it. Your dad being a doctor doesn’t automatically mean you’ll be a good one. Who YOU are is why you’ll be good.” Taylor blushed, thinking maybe she’d overstepped with the compliment. 

Karlie wasn’t sure how to react to that. It meant the moon that the girl thought she’d be good at her future profession, but did she really think that or was she just saying it because that was how courting worked. How could she even know? She shoveled a large chunk of ham into her mouth, using the chewing time to try to formulate a response.

“I’m glad you think so, although there’s a lot of hard work between here and me actually being a doctor. But right now, I was thinking about maybe getting the pumpkin cheesecake to split before we go back to working hard, what do you think?” Karlie, like most wolves, loved sweets, and adding pumpkin actually made it a bit healthier than the regular variety. And, if she casually ate less than her share, maybe the mortal would eat more, since she seemed to have consumed only half her salad.

“I love pumpkin, though it’s a bit early for it, isn’t it?” Taylor, like most basic mortals, loved anything pumpkin, and waited eagerly for the part of fall when it debuted at all the mortal stores.

“This cafe caters to a lot of wolves, and pumpkin, at least, real pumpkin, is healthy for both species, so it’s on the menu year round.” Karlie knew that a lot of mortals got excited about it, and had heard Taylor was no different.

“Cool! I didn’t know that. I’m going to have to check out more wolf bakeries then, if I can get pumpkin year-round. That sounds perfect, and then I can get the rest of this in a box for later.” 

Taylor lit up and Karlie was pleased with her choice, heading back up to the counter to place her order. Things were going so well, she was grateful for the chance to extend the date a bit longer.

-

Karlie found herself feeling more nervous than expected as they walked back to campus. She knew how this would go if Taylor was a wolf. A quick jaunt to whichever den was less occupied and then they'd see if they were mates. But while Karlie didn't have much experience with mortals she did remember from her health classes they moved slower, they tended to wait before having sex to declaring themselves mates. That they didn't have an innate mate bond, at least not that they could feel, and could even think someone was their mate who wasn't. It sounded needlessly confusing and messy to her and she was glad she didn't have to go through all that. It gave her pause though as the date drew to a close. Was there a wrong way to ask for another date? How soon was too soon for another one? Was Taylor even interested? Was this what mortals went through all the time?

Karlie was surprised when Taylor made a turn before they reached campus but followed her anyway, happy to enjoy the company. She'd roamed enough of the territory near campus that it was almost impossible for them to get lost if this was a random turn, and the idea Taylor might be prolonging their date a little pleased her.

Taylor breathed a sigh of relief when Karlie didn't ask where they were going. She didn't want to explain she wanted a little more time with her before she went back to studying and this was the longest way to her apartment building. Even if her feet were starting to hurt a little, not used to walking so far in these shoes, it was worth it for the company and the way Karlie would look like listening to Taylor talk about nothing was the most important thing she could do at that moment. It was far too soon, in her opinion, that they reached her apartment building.

“Well, this is me.” Taylor said, reluctantly.

Karlie’s heart sank as she surveyed the area. Oh moon. She’d been distracted talking to Taylor and although she’d realized they were definitely in one of the mortal heavy areas off campus, she hadn’t fully realized they were here. She’d never actually been to one of the buildings in this area, but having lived in Knoxville her whole life, she recognized it. Packloss Park. The buildings were even more inhospitable than the ones on New Campus. And although she knew that as a mortal, living here wasn’t necessarily an indication there was anything wrong with Taylor’s pack the way it would for a wolf, it was still...depressing...imagining the bright, friendly mortal living here. Hopefully her date at least had warm, natural furnishings and good mortal roommates?

Every wolf instinct Karlie had told her to just ask if her roommates were home and then go up. But she was pretty sure that for mortals, that would be too fast and probably overstepping. But she couldn't just let Taylor go up without letting her know how very much she enjoyed this. Was it...was it too fast to kiss after a first date? Why were mortals so confusing? “Oh. Um. Okay. Yeah.” Words, Kloss...you need to use words. “This has been really, really nice. I kind of don't want it to end. D'you...would you...could we maybe do this again, sometime?” Smooth, Kloss. She's DEFINITELY going to want to go out with you again after that speech.

“I don't want it to end either, honestly.” Taylor blushed. She knew she wasn't that good with dates and whatnot, but that was pretty obvious. “I really had a nice time. Thanks for lunch...and dinner...” Taylor held up the box of leftover salad, not sure what to make of the way Karlie was side-eying it. She realized that her athlete friend who had just scarfed down an entire pig of bacon probably had forgotten what portion sizes looked like for regular people who didn't run, ever, unless something scary was chasing them and hiding wasn't a viable option. “I would very, very much like to do this again. Maybe next time I could cook?” Why did I say that? I can't afford enough food to feed an athlete like her. She eats more than Austin!

Karlie blushed a little, unsure how to say no without causing offence. Taylor had just told her money was tight for her and while Karlie knew most omegas would make that sort of offer the same way Karlie brought courting offerings, she wasn’t sure if there were similar instincts and expectations for mortals. “Um...I kind of...eat a lot...maybe we could each make something and share? We could bake something? I really like to bake.”

“Yeah!” Taylor was relieved Karlie didn't want her to provide actual dinner. “Maybe just order pizza or something and we could make cookies?”

“It's a date.” Karlie smiled. Taylor was so cute when she was excited about something. “Saturday? I have a meet in the morning, but we could have the whole evening together?”

“Perfect.” Taylor impulsively hopped up onto her tiptoes and gave Karlie a kiss on her cheek. “See you Saturday!” She turned and walked into the building with a cheeky wave before she could over-think her actions and actually freak out.

Karlie stared for a few moments even after Taylor went into the building, needing a moment to process Taylor had actually kissed her on the cheek and that she was more affected by that than she thought she would be. She absolutely wasn’t blushing a little. Nope. That would be ridiculous. She was an experienced alpha wolf. She’d never blush over something as simple as a kiss on the cheek from a mortal girl.

Nodding as if to cement that fact in reality, Karlie turned and began to walk to campus, ignoring the urge to touch where Taylor had kissed her. She had a second date to plan, namely what to bake and how she could further impress the blonde. Maybe she could make wings to bring over to go with their pizza? Mortals ate those too, she knew. She’d seen her mortal teammates eat an impressive amount given they weren’t wolves. Hopefully it’d help her date realize she didn’t need to starve herself just to be polite.

She realized she was going to have to talk to the mortals on the team a bit more to try to find out their habits. It hadn't really mattered before. She'd never been opposed to dating a mortal, it just hadn't happened. But now that she'd met Taylor, well, it seemed like she needed to figure it out.

Karlie found that even by the time she arrived home, she couldn’t help but smile. Despite her best efforts, she hadn’t been able to keep from touching where Taylor had kissed her either. She still didn’t know how such a simple thing had had such an effect on her. Or maybe because it was such a simple thing? Maybe after so many moons of heated makeouts and quick hookups, Taylor kissing her cheek and leaving it at that almost had more impact than if she’d invited her up. Not that Karlie would have minded in the slightest if she’d been invited up.

Still, maybe she’d leave that part out of her retelling. No doubt her sisters would have comments about it.

Taylor’s reaction

Taylor was still smiling by the time she unlocked her door, wondering if her grin was as wide as she thought it was. She couldn’t believe she’d just kissed Karlie on the cheek out of nowhere but the other woman hadn’t seemed to mind at all if her smile was anything to go by. She could see now why Abigail kept pushing her to go out. That was one of the best afternoons she’d had in a while. Not that she’d tell her best friend. She could already hear the I-told-you-so tone she would get.

But she did need to tell her something. Abigail had all but threatened her if she didn’t call as soon as she was home to tell her how it went. If she didn’t, it would just mean being hunted down tomorrow. Or more realistically, woken up thanks to the emergency key and denied coffee until she started to talk.

Taylor had barely hit the call button before hearing, “How did it go?”

“Did the phone even ring?” Taylor asked.

“Yes. Now how did it go? Tell me everything!” Abigail paused for a second before saying, “Actually I have practice in a few minutes so tell me everything tonight over dinner. But for now, how did it go? Was it a good date? Do you like her?”

“I do. A lot. It was a good date, but I got kind of flustered at the end and I kissed her cheek. Is that weird? We're going to bake something together after her meet on Saturday, so I guess she liked me too?”

Abigail's esteem for the wolf grew, hearing that Taylor had kissed Karlie on the cheek and that seemed to be the most physical thing they'd done. She knew wolf sex ed usually covered the slower speed at which mortals got physical, but that didn't mean wolves always remembered or abided by it. Karlie didn't seem the type to push or take advantage of her friend, but Abigail didn't know her personally, so she didn't know for sure.

“I think a cheek kiss is adorable, and I'm sure Karlie did too. How about I swing by and pick you up after practice? Matt is making spaghetti so there's sure to be way more pasta than we can possibly eat in a week, and we can have dinner and you can tell me all about it.”

“Sounds great!” Taylor was actually quite happy that now the rest of her salad could be lunch, given she was about to make a solid investment in baking supplies for the next date. She knew from experience that Abigail was right. Matt had absolutely no idea how much pasta was appropriate for two people, and there would probably be enough to feed not only the three of them but likely their entire apartment building. Her one serving wouldn't be missed.

-

Taylor realized as she climbed the steps to Abigail and Matt's apartment that she was actually sort of bouncing. She'd had such a good time on her date with Karlie, and now that she'd had time to think about it, maybe the cheek kiss wasn't totally mortifying. After all, Karlie had grinned, and surely she would take it as the compliment Taylor meant it as, right? Even her knock on Abigail's door had a sort of jaunty rhythm.

“Oooh, someone had a good time today,” was Abigail's singsong greeting as she opened the door. “Joy looks good on you, Taylor.”

Taylor couldn't even be mad at the slight 'I told you so' tone, given Abigail hadn't said it outright. “Thanks? It really was nice. She took me to this little cafe just off campus...”

“North Star Cafe? I've been there with some of my teammates. They've got lots of choices, so anyone can eat there. What did you get?”

“The turkey club salad. Holy Lord, it was HUGE! Karlie kept looking at it weird, but considering she ordered a huge plate of breakfast, maybe she just thought it was too early for salad? Or maybe she'd never seen that much lettuce in one bowl? Anyway, I had to take half of it home. But it was really good.”

Abigail smiled. Of course her friend focused on the size of the portions. Taylor worked hard for her money, so finding a place with reasonably priced food that she could make more than one meal out of would definitely rank high on her idea of a good day. “Okay, so the food was good. But how was the girl?”

“She's so sweet, Abigail! I know there had to be people she knew in there, but it was like we were the only ones in the whole place. She was so genuinely focused on me, and making sure I was having a good time and everything, it was really...”

Taylor was cut off by the shrieking of the smoke alarm and the sound of Matt cursing from the kitchen, “Fucking garlic bread!”

Abigail immediately burst out laughing, heading into the kitchen to see how bad the damage was. “Aw babe, you almost managed to grab it while it was salvageable. I'm sure you'll get it next time.”

The look Matt gave her made clear he wasn't buying her sincerity and set Taylor off laughing as well.

“I don't know why this always happens!” Matt growled. “I set the timer and everything!”

“Maybe you should just give up on pasta?” Taylor suggested, knowing she'd be ignored like every other time this happened.

“And lose this entertainment? It's not often I get dinner and a show.” Abigail teased. “At least there's more than enough pasta that the garlic bread won't be missed.”

“It's not that much more.” Matt tried to defend, even as he stared at the overflowing colander.

“There's three of us, honey. In what world are we going to eat two boxes of spaghetti?” Abigail pointed out.

Taylor ignored the playful bickering, even if part of her mind couldn’t help but wander to the idea of having that one day...maybe with Karlie, and grabbed the salad from the fridge and taking it to the table crammed into the corner between the kitchen and living room. It had been Matt's contribution when moving in, having grown up with meals only being eaten at the table. She and Abigail had normally eaten on the couch quoting friends along to the tv. They could both admit, the amount of laundry spaghetti night could cause had been dramatically reduced.

“So, Taylor, how was the date?” Matt had been too focused on making dinner to really listen to her conversation with his girlfriend on the way in.

“Good. Good enough I think we’re going to have a second one.” Taylor blushed. No need to tell him about the cheek kiss.

“Nice!” Matt held up a hand still clad in a floral potholder for a high five, which Taylor returned, laughing. “Well, dig in, somehow there’s enough spaghetti here for you to take some for your second date, if you wanted.”

Taylor shook her head, though if they hadn’t already planned on pizza, she just might have considered it. While she dug in to her pile of pasta, she let the sounds of Abi and Matt talking about their days wash over her, wondering if just maybe, someday, she and Karlie would get to be this domestic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember how I said we don't know a regular update section? Yeah, that's clearly still a thing. Good news, we reached the "fuck it" point with this one so while it's not 100% it IS an update. Yay?


	5. The Inbetween and The Second Date

Karlie was ecstatic to be paired with one of her mortal teammates at practice. They did that sometimes, their coach believing that they could learn from one another. Mortals tended to have better form for running and weight training out of necessity, while wolves could help their mortal counterparts tune in to their instincts a little more. Karlie wasn't super close to Josalynn but they did talk on occasion and she figured she might be a good place to start when it came to the rituals of mortal dating.

“Hey Josalynn, I'm really glad we're working together today!” Karlie said brightly as they met in the weight room. Lifting was the perfect time to talk.

“Same!” Josalynn was the same year as Karlie but a transfer student, who looked up to the wolf a bit as an already seasoned veteran on the team. “I'm really glad we all get to work together here. My old team they kinda kept us separate more. It's one of the reasons I transferred.”

“Actually, that's one of the reasons I wanted to work with you today. I mean, we can all learn from each other, right?” Karlie was a little nervous to just start asking questions about dating. “I, um, I went on a date with a mortal girl, and I kinda want to make sure I'm doing it right. I really like her. I feel such a strong pull to her. But I don't want to overwhelm her or anything. Can I ask you a little bit about mortal dating?”

“Yeah, sure, ask me anything! As long as I can ask some wolf dating questions too. Like, does Devon have a girlfriend?”

Karlie laughed. This was going to go okay. “He doesn't. In fact, he hasn't been on a date in a little bit. You should talk to him.”

Josalynn nodded. “Okay. I will. So, what burning questions do you have about dating mortal girls?”

The rest of the workout passed quickly. Karlie learned a bit more about the expected speed of dating in the mortal realm, and how to gauge consent and interest from a mortal woman. She was pleased to learn the cheek kiss was a definite positive sign, indicating that Taylor might be interested in an actual kiss if the next date went well. It was sort of hard to imagine waiting several more dates before mating and finding out if it was a once thing or a forever thing, but if her instincts about Taylor were right, it was going to be worth it.

Josalynn also explained that Taylor's sex ed class might not have covered much beyond that wolves felt a mate bond pretty much immediately which is why they tended to mate after only a single date. That it had probably not covered the quirks of alpha anatomy, or possibly even the existence of alphas. That was a bit dismaying for Karlie, knowing that Taylor might not actually be prepared for that, but she hoped maybe a couple years of a lycan university might have given her a bit more insight into how things worked for wolves. For the first time she could remember, she was a little nervous about mating. What if Taylor wasn't comfortable with her being an alpha?

\---

As much as Taylor had spent all week looking forward to her date with Karlie, she’d spent just as much time dreading today. There was no way around it though. Her pantry was bare even with her leftover salad and spaghetti being stretched as much as they could. She couldn’t stand the thought of Karlie opening an empty fridge or cupboard while they were baking and pitying her. She’d just have to be careful, that’s all.

She’d thought hard about what cookies to make. Peanut butter cookies were easy and the leftover peanut butter would be useful but she hadn’t thought to ask Karlie if she had any allergies. Sugar cookies were also pretty simple but she knew most people would want to decorate them so that was out. She finally settled on snickerdoodles. Most people liked those, right?

Taking a deep breath, she walked into the store and pulled out her list and the the paper clipped coupons she’d clipped out and printed.

She grabbed the usual staples first. Ramen noodles, dried beans, bulk rice. There was nothing she could do to make the ramen look like anything other than what it was, but if she cooked the rice and beans, she could fill up a couple tupperwares and put them in the fridge, making it like she meal prepped, as long as her guest didn't look too closely. Loaf of bread, peanut butter and jelly. There was a coupon for the peanut butter, making Jif briefly cheaper than store brand. She had cinnamon at home, but she got a bag of chocolate chips just in case Karlie didn't like snickerdoodles. It helped she had another coupon to match and if nothing else, it would make for a nice chocolate stash. Flour, sugar, baking soda that wouldn't taste like years of fridge odors rounded out the rest of her baking list along with eggs, which she could also eat to add some protein to her meals.

Seeing a deal on frozen veggies, she impulse added those and a bottle of soy sauce - with the eggs, it would make decent fried rice. She had a coupon for the large bag of frozen chicken breasts that was her main source of meat protein, and heaved a sigh of relief to see it was also on sale. She could thaw a couple of them and put them in the fridge to make it seem a bit more...well stocked. She had tea bags at home, so she could make a pitcher of that, and of course water. She grabbed a lemon too, to make it seem fancy. She wished she could afford more fresh fruits and vegetables, but a jar of applesauce and the frozen mixed veggies would have to do. A half gallon of milk to go with the cookies and a family size tub of store brand yogurt filled out her cart. It still wasn't going to make it look like she had a lot, but at least if Karlie opened the fridge, she wouldn't be greeted by nothing more than half a container of spaghetti and a jar of pickles she couldn't remember purchasing.

She knew the cart was more full than it had been in months, but she still wasn't entirely prepared to watch the cashier ring her up. Fuck, She thought as she looked at the total. She’d known this was going to be expensive but still. “Can I put some of it on my card and pay some cash?”

She hated to use her emergency debit card, her savings were already meager enough. All that was in the account were the small remains of emergency car repair money her mom had put in her account before she passed for when she left for college. It’d been meant more for any emergency repairs, her mom not quite trusting the used car she’d helped Taylor pick out. It hadn’t been added to since, and this sadly wasn’t the first time she’d had to dip into it over the last few years.

She'd have to ask about some extra shifts tomorrow. Maybe between that and tips she'd be able to replenish her emergency fund a little. Who was she kidding? It would probably all go towards buying some extra staples and maybe replenishing her toiletries a bit.

It was even less satisfying than she'd hoped, loading her haul into the refrigerator. Her two thawing chicken breasts just looked lonely in the meat drawer, and until she had time to soak the beans, they weren't ready to cook. She decided to thaw two more chicken breasts to add to the fried rice. At least containers of that would look promising to a visitor, right? Abigail no longer flipped out when she saw Taylor's usual fridge contents, but they'd been best friends since their first day of high school. She knew Taylor and her situation. Karlie didn't. And Taylor wasn't sure she was ready to put that all out there on a second date. Maybe someday, if this became more than a couple dates.

As soon as the last of the noodles was in the pantry, she called the diner. Might as well start begging for hours now. She'd worked hard not to have to use credit she couldn't pay back, she didn't want finally dating to be the tipping point. And she really liked Karlie. A lot. Even better, she was able to snag the Saturday morning shift. She wouldn't be able to check out Karlie's meet, but that was probably okay. It was probably too soon for that sort of move. And if it WASN'T too soon, and Karlie asked, work was a valid reason not to have gone.

\--- 

Getting the Saturday morning shift was a boon Taylor didn’t expect but was grateful for. What she really didn’t count on was that sometimes when it rained, it poured. It was just her luck that the one time she had a date, someone called out last minute and she was asked to cover until the next person showed up. It wasn’t like she didn’t need the couple extra hours, but it did remove the time she’d have to get ready. She didn’t think she could say no anyway, not when she’d just begged for more hours the day before and they were swamped with all the extra people there for the meet. At least she’d been able to text Karlie where to meet her and when.

“Taylor, table 15.” Tammy said as she walked past, letting her know it’s been turned over already. The benefit of their busboy today being a wolf, she supposed. He worked hard and worked quick but always had a kind smile for anyone he came across. Approaching the table, she saw gave the couple a smile, clearly parents there to support their child for the meet if the school T-shirts and caps were anything to go by.

“Hi, my name is Taylor and I’ll be your waitress today. Is there anything I can start you off with? Drinks? Appetizers?” She asked, flashing her best smile. Tips had been good today given the volume, some of the more generous parents making up for the ones who didn’t tip. Or worse, left religious pamphlets. It was something she found united her and her wolf coworkers, grumbling over pushy cheapskate mortals.

“Just water.” The man answered. “And we’re actually ready to order.”

“Alright, what can I get you?”

“Two double bbq bacon burgers, no buns.”

Definitely wolves, Taylor thought to herself. “We do have the option of getting those on mixed greens. Is that something you would be interested in?”

Both nodded and Taylor flashed another smile before going to put their order in.

\---

“Sorry!” Taylor shouted, a little out of breath from trying to rush to get there to meet her date even if she was going to be late. “I’m so sorry! We had someone call out and someone else was late and I couldn’t get away on time.”

Finally catching her breath, Taylor stood up straight. The irony of running to meet up with a track star and ending up out of breath in the process wasn’t lost on her. At least Karlie didn’t seem to be judging her. “How was your meet?”

“Pretty good. The team had the overall high score. I got first in two of my events, but the mixed-species relay team came in second, and I was third in my last race.” Karlie pulled a face. She didn't like losing. Part of her was glad she hadn't won them all, which would probably just sound like bragging, but still. She wanted to impress Taylor. Maybe even tempt her into coming to her next meet. “My parents came, which was nice. I mean, they don't live far off campus, so they come to most of my meets, but it's really awesome that they actually come support me. My dad's an ER doc, so his time off doesn't always match up well with my meets. He missed my senior night in high school after that big wreck at the 40/75 interchange. But he tries to always be there.”

Taylor was glad she'd bent down to rummage in her bag for the key to her building, so Karlie wouldn't see her face when she started talking about her parents and their support. Her father was like that for Austin. Always going to his games and stuff. But even before she'd sealed his disapproval by announcing her intent to go to a lycan university instead of what he considered a 'normal' one, Austin had been the favorite. Taylor had already been well aware she was the black sheep, even before choosing a college. Or, rather, the rainbow sheep. The thought forced her to stifle a giggle, which left her with the properly happy expression in response to hearing about her date's successful meet and family time.

“That's great! It must be really nice having them so close. I got to meet some of their fellow track supporters at work today, I think. Lots of parents in school colors came in today. Ugh. I probably still smell like today's lunch special. Burgers. Sorry.” They'd talked about Taylor's work at the diner before, on their first date. It was a small family owned place, that served most of the traditional menu you'd expect. But given the position in a college town, and a lycan one at that, they had plenty of meat-heavy options on order for breakfast and lunch. Not that that was a surprise given the owners were the sweetest older pair of mates she'd ever met.

“I don't mind at all, as long as you managed to snag one of them while you were working. They do feed you, right?” Karlie tried not to sound too concerned, but the mortal WAS thin.

“One of the perks of the job, no worries. A meal every shift and unlimited lattes.” Taylor smiled. She HAD eaten lunch at the diner, though not a burger. They'd also had a quiche Lorraine on special that had been delicious.

“Awesome!” Karlie felt genuinely better. Even if her date played the mortal game of eating light in front of a date, she'd had something substantial already. “My Mom helped me make wings - sweet barbecue and buffalo - to have with our pizza.” Karlie held up the small soft-sided cooler she'd been carrying for emphasis. “So, what are we baking?”

Taylor hesitated at her own door, trying to remember if she'd cleaned up the worst of the morning's chaos before leaving. She'd planned on having several hours between the end of her shift and her date to get ready. Still, she couldn't very well make Karlie stand on the doormat while she cleaned up. “Snickerdoodles? I figured they were a classic.” Apologizing for the potential mess, she opened the door, admitting the first girlfriend she'd ever brought home to her living room.

Karlie appreciated some of the features right away, to her own surprise. She’d worried the moment they entered the building and almost shivered at how cold it felt. Packloss park certainly lived up to it’s reputation. And the out of order sign on the elevator didn’t build her confidence in it any further. But Taylor’s apartment was different, far warmer than she was expecting given where she lived. The main room was quite open, plenty of space for a couple loveseats, a dining table, bookcases, and even a fireplace. The kitchen was small but would be okay for two, and had a nice view into the living room should they want to light a fire in colder weather or...Karlie was getting ahead of herself. They might not even be mates. There were a couple doors off the main room that she imagined went to the bathroom and maybe the hall to the bedrooms. The room was in no way messy. There was a frying pan in the sink, along with what looked like the remains of yogurt from breakfast. Certainly nothing compared to some of the dens she'd seen over the years.

“This is a mess?” Karlie lightly teased, enjoying the way Taylor just began to blush. “I don't know if you ever want to see where some of my teammates live. Or where I live. I have three sisters and we share one bathroom.”

Taylor jokingly winced, conceding the point. It had been bad enough with her and Austin. She didn't want to imagine four girls fighting for the sink. “Let me clean up from earlier and then we can start baking if you want? Unless you want to order the pizza now? I'm sure you ran up an appetite.”

“I'm fine. We all tend to at least have a snack together after meets. Partly to celebrate together and partly to make sure no one crashes afterwards.” Karlie said, touched Taylor thought to ask given her metabolism but having made sure to fill up a bit. Her “snack” was more of a first meal, knowing the mortal probably wasn't prepared to feed a wolf a full meal. Hopefully, it would encourage her date to eat a little more of the pizza and wings. While Taylor did the dishes from earlier, refusing Karlie's offer to help, Karlie glanced around the living room in a little more detail.

She had picked up from her teammates that some mortals waited a bit before inviting a potential mate into their den, so she hoped that was a good sign. She wasn't about to miss the opportunity to learn a little more about her date. She saw a photo of what could only be Taylor's pack. There was no missing the resemblance there. Karlie knew mortals had smaller packs but it was still odd to see she only had a brother. The rest of the photos seemed to be Taylor and someone she vaguely recognized from the swim team. They'd been at the same sports parties but never talked much. Still she couldn't help but feel the photos were a bit off, even if she hadn't spent much time in mortal dens. They always had photos up on tv shows and those were based on real dens right? Where were the rest of Taylor's friendpack in the photos? Why was there only one of her pack? And what about her roomates' photos? She supposed they might still be unpacking, caught up in the new semester, and Taylor was being courteous and leaving them space. And being so far from them, most of her pack photos were in her room maybe? But Karlie knew she'd want them everywhere if she was away from her family.

Her attention was drawn back to Taylor by the cupboard slamming shut and she realized Taylor had taken the time to set most of the ingredients on the counter. She immediately felt a pang of guilt. Here she was on a date, invited into the very private mortal’s home and what did she do? Immediately become nosy and judge her pack photos? Not only that but she didn’t even think to offer to help get out the ingredients? Her mother would smack her upside the head if she knew about it. “Oh, gosh, I could have helped you with that.”

“It's fine,” Taylor smiled, genuinely relieved Karlie hadn't been paying attention to realize that all she had in her cabinets were those ingredients and ramen. “You can grab the eggs and butter from the fridge, if you like? If you're thirsty there's iced tea in there, or I have a Brita if you want water.”

Taylor resumed digging through her cabinets to get out a bowl and mixer, giving Karlie a chance to look for more than just the ingredients in the fridge. She was pleased to see that it appeared there were several meals in tupperwares, which was reassuring, but there were only two chicken breasts in the meat drawer, and no other meat to be seen. While she supposed it was possible that the mortal had eaten the last of the bacon and sausage for breakfast and not had time to buy more because of her extended work schedule, the apartment didn't have that lingering homey scent of cooked meat. And where was the food for Taylor's roommates? Karlie grabbed the tea and a baggie of sliced lemon she was pretty sure went together, wanting to show her appreciation for Taylor inviting her into her home. She couldn't imagine that mattered to mortals any less than it did to wolves. She knew how her mom would feel if someone visited and didn't eat and drink something.

Karlie poured them both some iced tea, hoping it was enough to satisfy manners. As it was, she was even more thankful she’d eaten after her meet with the team so she’d have an excuse to leave the mortal more of the wings. Taking a sip of the tea, she found it wasn’t the sweet stuff one of her mortal teammates had gotten the entire pack hooked on for a when they wanted a treat but it was still pretty good.

The two chatted amiably as they assembled the ingredients. Both were pleased to discover that they fell easily into a natural rhythm. Karlie volunteered to do most of the mixing, figuring she was stronger than the mortal, and Taylor was quite happy to be relegated to measuring, and laying parchment on cookie sheets. Once the first batch was in the oven, the girls sat down to order pizza.

Remembering Karlie's order at the diner, Taylor joked “Lemme guess...Meat lovers pizza?”

Karlie laughed too. If they were ordering from a mortal pizza place, that was, indeed, her pick. And since Taylor was holding a coupon from Little Joey's, a mortal owned but lycan-friendly place less than two blocks away, that seemed to be the plan. “How'd you ever guess?”

Taylor giggled “just a hunch I had.” She normally ordered plain cheese, because it was cheapest, but the coupon in her hand made any large pizza the same price as cheese, so she figured she'd get the whole thing meat lovers, just because it was easier. Sure, it would be a lot of meat with the wings, but she still had some leftover salad from the other day at Abigail's, so at least there would be veggies too, and she had some ranch dressing that would be extra nice with the buffalo of the wings.

“Did you have a movie in mind?” Taylor asked, pulling up the nextflix account she shared with Austin. As long as their dad didn’t realize he’d given her the password it was fine. Not that he’d probably be inclined to yell at Austin about it. “I’m open to pretty much anything?”

Karlie considered the options. As much as she loved sci-fi, she knew it wasn’t everyone’s thing. And while Taylor knew she was a bit of a nerd, she didn’t feel the need for the blonde to know how deep that went just yet. And while Taylor clearly liked medical procedurals, she didn’t think she wanted to hear her commentary on everything they got wrong. Oh, she’d try to resist but her dad was an ER doctor for Moon’s sake. After another minute she spotted a possibility in Taylor’s recommended list. “How about Iron Man? I haven’t seen that in a while but I remember it being pretty good.”

“Sounds good to me.” Taylor agreed easily, hitting play and settling into the couch. Even as the movie started and attempted to draw her in, she was hyperaware of Karlie next to her. And not just because the brunette clearly ran a bit hotter than her, if the warmth she’d felt when she brushed against her was any indicator. It’d be so easy to lean against Karlie’s shoulder. But would she be okay with that? Would she wrap an arm around her like Taylor wanted her to? What if she just went tense but stayed put to be polite? Or maybe even worse, found it uncomfortable and shifted away subtly? Taylor cursed herself, knowing objectively she had to be interested to be there but her brain kept looping back to everything that could go wrong.

Karlie both silently cursed and thanked the timer going off and the doorbell ringing, interuppting the moment. She told herself she’d almost been ready to make the first move and see if Taylor would be open to cuddling during the movie but she knew deep down she was too worried it would be too fast for the mortal and scare her off.

“I’ll grab the pizza. Can you get the cookies out of the oven?” Taylor asked.

Pausing the movie, Karlie got up and spent a minute or two trying to figure out where the oven mitt was before finally spotting it peeking out from beneath a dish towel. It only took her a moment or two to get the cookies onto the cooling wrack, resisting the urge to take a bite out of one right away. She didn't think her date would find her too attractive trying to cool a too hot bite of cookie in her mouth.

They were left at a bit of a standoff once Taylor got the plates out, neither woman moving towards the food. Taylor wanting to make sure Karlie got enough to eat after her meet and Karlie wanting Taylor to have her pick of the pizza and especially the wings. Realizing that probably letting the guest go first was a part of mortal culture just like it was wolf culture, Karlie took a slice of pizza and three wings, and a small helping of salad. She still wasn't sure that taking a smaller portion was the right thing to do, because Taylor might echo her selections and that wasn't the point, but she didn't know how else to ensure there was more than enough for the mortal. Sure enough, Taylor took the same, although she did take a fourth wing so as to have two of each sauce. Karlie held back the sigh she felt, seeing Taylor take so little food.

Once both women had emptied their plates, she was seized by inspiration. “I'm going to get seconds, want me to get you some?” She was thrilled when Taylor's answer was affirmative. She could work with this. She took the smallest remaining slice of pizza for herself, while placing the largest one on Taylor's plate. Then she grabbed another four wings for the mortal, but only two more for herself, though she kept the bones from the previous ones, hoping that if Taylor glanced, she'd assume she'd already eaten her seconds. She was disappointed when the mortal stopped after the wings and half the slice of pizza, claiming to be full, but at least she'd eaten more of the protein than the carbs, especially since they still had the fresh cookies for later.

Not wanting to pause the movie again, they just pushed the plates to the side. Now that they'd both eaten, it was time to really get into the story. They had both seen the movie before, and enjoyed Tony Stark's particular brand of sarcasm, as well as the way the director had portrayed the dynamics between the mortal and wolf characters. About a half hour after dinner, Taylor was forced to accept that she was going to have to either pause the movie or miss a small bit, because she was freezing. It happened a lot. As the sun went down, the air conditioning somehow became too much for the small apartment, but it also had only two settings. Arctic, or sweltering. She was going to have to get a blanket.

“Um, wanna share?” Taylor asked, plopping back down on the couch a fraction closer to her date. “There's plenty of blanket.”

It was not a hard question. But for Karlie, the decision was agonizing. She wasn't cold. Not even a little, though she could see the goosebumps that meant her date was. However. Was this Taylor's way of suggesting they get a little closer? Karlie had wanted to cuddle from the moment they started the film, especially as the lights got dimmer, but she wasn't sure how fast was too fast in the mortal world, even after asking a few teammates, and she didn't want to scare her off. But if this WAS the mortal way of opening the door for cuddling, she certainly didn't want to slam it shut. “Yeah. I'd like that.”

Taylor scooted even closer, so that their hips were touching, and tossed the blanket over Karlie's long legs, resting her own next to them on the ottoman. Karlie felt that little tingle of excitement from being so close to someone she was attracted to, and wondered if mortals felt anything similar. It only felt natural to wrap an arm around Taylor's shoulder, more to stop their shoulders from fighting than anything, though it certainly wasn't a bad feeling, the way the mortal fit so perfectly against her body. And then Taylor tilted her head just slightly so it laid against Karlie, and she realized that she could get used to this.

Taylor had a little more difficulty concentrating on the movie once she was settled against her date. It was both distracting and soothing laying like this, surprisingly comfortable with the warmth Karlie seemed to radiate negating the chill of the room. She wasn't sure the last time she'd felt this relaxed. Something about her date made her more comfortable, especially like this.

Maybe even safe? Taylor thought before wondering if it was too soon to for that. Was it normal to feel so safe with someone on only a second date? She tried not to dwell on it too much, knowing she had limited time with the athlete and all night to over analyze her feelings. She was soon distracted anyway when Karlie began tracing patterns on her arm. She wasn't sure the other woman even realized she was doing it, but it was oddly comforting. She thought she could almost fall asleep like this.

Karlie found herself tensing as the movie reached its climax. It was ridiculous, she knew how it ended. It had been a family favourite when it first came out. But for some reason she couldn't explain, she felt a little more tense seeing the very human Tony Stark in mortal danger against Stane. Without realizing it, she began to hold Taylor a little tighter against her and didn't relax until Pepper saved the day and her future mate by overloading the arc reactor.

Taylor noticed that as the movie got more intense, so did Karlie's hold on her. It was adorable, seeing her date get so into the story, even though they both knew how it was going to end. She found herself wanting to hold her hand or something, just because she seemed to need reassurance that they were both okay here in the real world. It was sort of the cutest thing she'd ever seen. But even more adorable was the relief on Karlie's face when Pepper was able to save the day. They could both appreciate the woman being the one to take charge and make it turn out okay in the end.

“Oh my god. I definitely need some cookies after that! I'd forgotten how intense it was.” Taylor was acting, a little, not wanting her date to be embarrassed by her reaction to the movie. But she DID want a cookie or two. She'd sort of forgotten about them, for a while. While she took them off the cooling racks and piled them onto a plate, Karlie packaged up the remaining wings, salad and pizza. She'd split them in two for show, but knew she planned to 'forget' her half in the fridge when it was time for her to go. She had more than enough meat at home, and it was clear Taylor needed it more than she did, even if the mortal didn't want to say so.

“Can you grab the milk?” Taylor asked, seeing Karlie placing the leftovers in the fridge. A little confused, Karlie nodded even if her date couldn't see it and brought over the half gallon. Was Taylor planning on making something else? She found herself staring as Taylor poured some into a glass. Was she okay? Karlie knew all pups, mortal and wolf, drank milk as part of their diet but she wasn't sure why Taylor was pouring herself a glass. She knew her mom had given her and her sisters some when they were sick, saying the fat and calories were good for them, but Taylor didn't seem sick.

It wasn't until her date briefly dunked her half-eaten cookie in it before taking a bite that it clicked. She'd seen this before, in movies and on tv. Mortals sometimes had their cookies with milk and even dunked them.

“Do you want a glass too?” Taylor asked.

“No thank you.” Karlie said, relieved she'd remembered the custom before having to ask and watching as Taylor took a sip as though it were normal. She grabbed a glass and filled it with ice water, her own favorite accompaniment for cookies. Coffee would also be a good choice, but she hadn't noticed if Taylor had any and didn't want to embarrass her by asking for something she wasn't sure she had. Which brought her to something else embarrassing. “Um. May I use your bathroom?”

“Oh, yeah, of course. It's the door on the right. The towels on the shelf above the toilet are all clean.”

Karlie let herself into the tiny bathroom and immediately noticed something odd. There was only one set of used towels, hanging on the back of the other door, which Karlie was now beginning to suspect led into a solo bedroom, rather than the hallway she'd assumed since she arrived. Did Taylor not have roommates? She knew she had a small familypack, and a fairly small friendpack, but did she not have even a denpack? No wonder money was so tight for her mortal date. It made her just want to give her a hug and invite her home to her den. Not even to mate, just to be surrounded by love and warmth like she got from her pack.

It gave Karlie a new appreciations for the packs the moon had blessed her with. And a new courage. She knew one of the ways to recover from packloss was physical contact. She resolved she'd have to find the middle ground between being brave and respecting mortal norms. She knew she couldn't go back and drape herself over Taylor or pull her into her arms the way she would a hurting packmate, but she knew she'd have to be brave and initiate more casual touching. She wondered if it was too soon to invite Taylor to a practice. She wanted Taylor to have the opportunity to build her own bonds with the pack. Even if they ended up not being mates, Karlie couldn't imagine not still wanting Taylor around. Hopefully Taylor would accept her as part of her friendpack in that scenario. She knew mortals could be weird about that sort of thing.

Going back to her date, she pulled Taylor into a sort of side hug. Friends did that, so she didn't think it would be too much. Not really all that different from having her arm around her for the movie. Taylor didn't seem to mind, leaning into her a bit, even as her hands were full of soapy water from cleaning the baking and dinner dishes so she couldn't reciprocate. “I can dry, if you want, and then if you tell me where they go, I'll put them away?” Karlie already had the towel that had been hanging from the oven door in her hand, knowing that Taylor couldn't be a good enough juggler to wash, rinse, AND dry all at once. As they finished the dishes, though, both began to slow their work, deliberately dragging out the last few, not wanting the evening to end.

It had been fun, baking, watching the movie, getting to know each other even better. Taylor realized she was definitely falling for this girl, hard, and it was exhilarating and terrifying all at once. She'd never opened her heart to anyone before, always choosing to keep her feelings to herself. Her family complicated things, and she got the feeling Karlie's family was everything she wished hers was, everything she'd thought they were, when she was young and hadn't discovered all the fears and prejudices that her parents harbored. But just that simple hug while she'd been doing the dishes had felt...right. The way it was supposed to be. She could definitely get used to sharing a kitchen with her, even if Karlie was going to eat her out of house and home with her crazy athlete diet.

Karlie didn't want to leave. She couldn't imagine anything worse than a completely empty den without even the possibility of pack to fill it. She tried not to think about it, wanting to make sure that the happiness she felt after spending time with Taylor was what showed on her face, rather than her concern for her new friend/potential mate. There was so much she realized she didn't know about mortals. It seemed unthinkable that Taylor was okay with how things were, but other than the apparently tight finances, the mortal seemed pretty happy most of the time. And, Karlie mentally preened a little, happier still when Karlie was around.

Eventually, the dishes were all dried and put away, the cookies split into two bags, so Karlie could take some home, and the two women knew the date had to come to an end. “So, I was thinking maybe we could go hiking soon? Maybe the 1st? I checked the school calendar and there's not a meet then. We could go up by the waterfall and then maybe eat at the restaurant by the park entrance?” Taylor thought Karlie seemed like the outdoor type, and the waterfall trail was one of her favorites to hike with Abigail, so she knew it wasn't too much for her less-athletic self.

Karlie was touched she'd checked for her meet schedule...and that she'd already thought ahead to their third date. “That sound great! I'll bring some snacks for the trail in case we get hungry. But, maybe, do you want to have dinner or something this week? We could just meet in the dining hall or whatever. It doesn't have to be fancy, I just...”

“It's a date,” Taylor blushed. She guessed it was. They'd been on two, so this was probably becoming a thing, right?

“Definitely.” This time, Karlie was the one to lean in for a kiss on Taylor's forehead, before she opened the door to let herself out. She mentally cringed as she did. She should have gone for it! But if Taylor didn't want her to go for it? She proably could have, she realized as she pulled back and mentally face palmed. But maybe that was for the best? Karlie still felt lost in mortal dating norms even after all her attempts to find out more about them. Especially since they didn't seem to be as universal as they were for wolves. Maybe it was better to let Taylor make the first move. “I'll text you once I get the practice schedule. Goodnight, Taylor.”

“Night!” Despite the lack of goodnight kiss, Taylor couldn't wait to tell Abigail all about date two...and try to figure out what to do about the third date. Date three, after all, was somewhat legendary, but as she'd never been on a date before, period, it was a bit confusing. Even more so since they hadn't even kissed. She was sure Karlie was going to but she seemed to change her mind at the last second. Even if it wasn't as fast as Taylor might have liked she wasn't about to complain. After all, she had seen enough wolves move at what seemed to be the speed of light. She was just glad Karlie didn't seem to have adopted those same standards the way a lot of the mortal guys on campus had. She knew she'd have turned her down if she'd wanted to move that fast after their first date. Why did it all have to be so confusing? Abigail was lucky to have Matt.

\---

Karlie had barely made it through the door before she found herself being bombarded with questions about her date. Shaking her head, she realized as much as it annoyed her sometimes she couldn't imagine not having Kimby there to demand every detail. The new appreciation for her pack filled her and she pulled her little sister into a hug, cutting her off mid question. Spotting Kariann lingering nearby, she motioned her over into the hug.

“Is everything okay?” Kimby asked cautiously.

“Yeah,” Karlie said softly, basking in the strong packbond between them. “Just...just give me a moment, okay?”

It showed the depth of Kimby's concerns that she held off on her questions and let Karlie have her moment. Spotting the cuddle in the entryway lead to Kristine soon joining in, not sure what was going on but willing to partake in it. Karlie knew she'd have to answer her pack's questions carefully. She wanted to fill them in and ask her parents about mortal packs and packloss but didn't want Taylor to later feel she'd broken a confidence.

Once the hug broke up, she found herself being guided into the living room where her parents were waiting.

“How did it go?” Tracy asked.

“It went really well!” Karlie said, starting with the positive. “We baked cookies and had pizza and wings while watching a movie at Taylor's den. We're having another date just before Labor Day and dinner sometime this week. I think the swim team has something this week and Taylor's closest friendpack member is on the team.”

“So why aren't you over the moon?” Kristine asked, knowing her sister should be thrilled to have reached a third date with a potential mate.

“I'm worried about her. She lives in a one bedroom in packloss park. The living room is nicer than I expected but there's only one photo of her pack, and it looks old. Her friendpack seems to be one other mortal, a girl from the swim team. I just...she's so sweet and seems pretty happy but I just...I don't know...” Karlie said knowing she had even more concerns to share with her bloodpack. That money seemed a bit tight for Taylor and how she never mentioned her sires or brother besides only having one picture of them. She could see her family becoming just as concerned and it both comforted and deepened her concern. She knew without being told Kristine would soon be trying to get to know Taylor a little better and befriend her but that her parents were concerned too told her this wasn't normal mortal behavior.

“You know, Karlie, one of the major reasons for packloss among mortals is being part of the LGBTQ community. For us, it’s no big deal because your mate is your mate, regardless of how they identify. But for them, babies can usually only come naturally through the mating of a man and a woman, as assigned at birth. Given she likes you, she's obviously somewhere on that spectrum.” Tracy had been thinking the whole time about her past as a mortal, the things that had divided mortal communities. “If even one member of her pack is homophobic, that could do it. Maybe try to find out more? But in the meantime, she's always welcome here.”

“Yeah, for sure. Even if you guys aren't mates, I'm going to make sure I keep getting to know her. I hate that I didn't sooner, but at least I can try to make this the year she finds her packs on campus.” Kristine placed a reassuring hand on Karlie's arm. “If nothing else, it sure looks like her pack has grown by one, right?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're alive! And actually updating! No one is more amazed than me. But here it is, finally posted. Thank you everyone for your patience and thank you for reading!


	6. The Revelation

Kristine waved at a few classmates as she entered the class, avoiding being drawn into discussion of summers and first classes of the year. She couldn't deny she'd been looking forward to her marketing class. Not just because of the subject or professor, but also because it was the only class she shared with Taylor.  
  
She knew, of course, mortals handled mates and potential mates and their packs very differently. She couldn't imagine waiting sometimes months to meet your pup's partner and it sometimes taking years before they were considered part of the pack in full. As it was, Kimby was pouting over having to wait to meet Taylor and she knew her parents only pretended to be less impatiently curious.  
  
So she knew she couldn't overwhelm Taylor and try to become her best friend overnight. But between Karlie dating her and Kristine's own realization over how little she knew the mortal she'd known for years, she was hoping to start building bridges with Taylor now. It'd probably drive Kimby crazy once she knew, but she didn't think it would scare Taylor off. And Karlie would probably appreciate the gesture.  
  
“Hey, how was your summer?” Kristine smiled at Taylor, having to push back the urge to frown at the way she jumped and seemed a bit surprised to be addressed.  
  
“It was okay. Busy. Yours?” Taylor smiled back. No one had really asked her that in...well, years. It was curious, really. She'd been at school now for four years, and other than during the initial freshman year 'getting to know you' phase, people had largely left her alone. Now she had the makings of a girlfriend, and now, Kristine, a wolf she'd shared classes with since she declared her major, was also being friendly. Had something changed? Had they finally gotten over her rejection of Dianna Agron, whom had been very charming and enticing....right up until Taylor discovered her well-founded reputation?  
  
“It was really good!” Kristine smiled. “I spent a lot of time with my pack. We went to Disney World again this summer. We've done it every years since my sisters and I were little. I also got to do a summer internship with NEXT.”  
  
“Really?” Taylor asked, a bit envious. She'd seen the listing for it but knew it was impossible for her to do. She didn't have the money to even consider an unpaid internship, let alone one in New York.  
  
“It was really cool, actually.” Kristine said. “It was a lot of clerical work but they also made sure to actually teach us about the company and a lot of the different roles and departments.”  
  
“Have you ever had Professor Selene before?” Taylor asked, seeing the professor in question walk in.  
  
“Just Intro to Marketing freshman year. I don't think you were in my section though.” Kristine remembered sharing a few classes with the mortal over the years, but not that one.  
  
“I took it second semester, with Plank. So this is my first class with him. How's the grading?” Taylor was pleased to have hit on a topic to talk that would actually keep the conversation going.  
  
“Fair, I think. The hardest bit is there are a lot of group projects, but as long as you've got a good partner, it should be fine.” Kristine noticed that Taylor winced a bit at the mention of group projects. She couldn't blame her. They sucked. And she had a feeling Taylor had gotten stuck with a few less than desirable partners over her school career. Not this term. Kristine planned to partner up with her sister's potential mate for all of them. She was smart, so it wasn't like Kristine wasn't getting a good partner out of it anyway.  
  
Taylor was about to reply how much she hated group projects when Professor Selene decided it was the perfect moment to begin class. Taylor supposed it was just as well. She didn't really want to admit to her first new potential friend in a while, barring Karlie who seemed more like a girlfriend than a friend friend, that she didn't ever get a good partner for anything because no one ever picked her.  
  
“Crap, I've got to get to my seat. Talk to you later!” Kristine shot Taylor a smile before turning to the corner of the room her friends were waving her over to.  
  
Not sure what else to do, Taylor nodded and gave Kristine a quick wave before she left. _And this is why you have no friends. What was that wave even?_  
  
Before she could dwell on it any longer, Professor Selene pulled up the powerpoint for the syllabus, drawing groans from the entire room.  
  
“Yes, yes, I know.” He laughed. “You're all thoroughly done with syllabi. I'll try to make this quick since I plan on going over the first chapter and talking about our first project.”  
  
That drew more groans and mutters and the professor smirked. “Bet you all wish you hadn't complained about the syllabus now?”  
  
Rolling her eyes, too familiar with his sense of humour, Taylor skimmed the syllabus to at least somewhat follow along even if her mind was half on her next date with Karlie. The fact it was their third date kept playing in her mind along with her uncertainty over what she was ready for versus what the brunette might expect.  
  
She only just managed to tune back in when they changed to covering chapter one of the book, flipping open her notebook and preparing for her hand to cramp. As easier as typing would make her life, she knew her laptop didn't have the battery life to handle not being plugged in for more than half an hour. Besides, she knew she was clumsy enough sometimes just walking with her books. She shuddered to think what would happen if god forbid she tripped with her laptop.  
  
“Okay, I'll give you the last few minutes of class to pair up and exchange numbers or work out a plan.” Professor Selene said. “Just make sure you come up and tell me who's working with who before you leave.”  
  
While the rest of the room exploded into action, Taylor began slowly packing her stuff. She knew it'd be awhile before anyone reluctantly approached her once they were out of options. Which suited her fine since she needed to talk to Professor Selene after class anyway. Maybe she would get lucky and there'd be an odd number of people in the class. She'd probably end up doing most of the work on her own anyway. At least that way she'd get the full credit.  
  
“Have a partner in mind?” Taylor dropped her pen at the sound of the wolf's voice. She'd expected her to partner up with one of her friends over in the corner, but as she glanced that way, she saw that they had been a group of five with Kristine. Ah. Kristine had drawn the short straw. At least she was a hard worker, from what Taylor had seen in past classes. This was way better than the usual sort of partner she got.  
  
“Um, not really. Are you looking for one?” Taylor hoped that didn't sound too desperate.  
  
“I was hoping maybe I was talking to her? Since you don't already have one. I think it could be fun to work with you. Cammie never does her half of the work, and Amber is smart but doesn't play well with others. So I'm looking forward to a partner who can do both: her half of the work and be part of a team.” Kristine had gestured to two of her friends, indicating she'd had the option to work with either but had _chosen_ Taylor. She wanted Taylor to know it had been a choice, as she had a hunch Taylor wasn't picked often.  
  
“Yeah? Yeah! I'd love to be your partner. I have to talk to the professor after class anyway since he's my advisor, so I'll let him know if you've got another class to get to?” Taylor wanted to make this as easy as possible for the kind wolf. Hopefully she wouldn't regret her choice to pair with Taylor.  
  
“Cool, thanks. See you Thursday?” Kristine did, actually, have somewhere to be.  
  
“Yeah, see you then. I'll email my info to your school email?” Taylor knew they'd better work out communication early if they were really going to work together well.  
  
“Perfect! Later Taylor!”  
  
Taylor waited until the room had cleared before approaching the professor.  
  
“Good afternoon, Taylor.” The professor smiled at her. “Did you manage to find a good partner.”  
  
“Good afternoon, Nik.” Taylor smiled. “Yeah, I think so. Kristine and I are going to be working together.”  
  
“That's great! You're both very bright. I expect a good result.” The professor said, adding them to the list. He hadn't missed the elder Kloss sister speaking to Taylor before class or deliberately approaching her after. It was a welcome change, one he'd been hoping to see for years. “How was your summer?”  
  
“It was good. I worked a lot.” Taylor shrugged, knowing without having to look her advisor was disappointed in that. Professor Selene, or Nik as he’d spent most of freshman year convincing her to use outside of actual class hours, was probably the only wolf on campus who knew her actual situation with her finances and family. Taylor could only turn down so many good opportunities, studying abroad or internships that were unpaid but useful or just didn't pay enough, before she'd had to explain to her frustrated and confused advisor why she was so ambitious in her coursework but seemed to be holding herself back outside of the university itself.  
  
Nik nodded understandingly, trying not to let his frustration show. It wasn’t directed at Taylor after all. It wasn’t her fault her sire was apparently a deadbeat. Internally he still wanted to growl over it. He didn’t doubt Taylor could be some sort of powerhouse if she’d been able to make use of her family’s resources and take some of the opportunities she’d had to pass up to pay the bills. The girl had a natural knack for marketing and she had confided in him she’d almost gotten a record deal before her mom had gotten sick. He hadn’t heard her play but didn’t doubt she’d have set the world on fire if she’d put her mind to it. “Did you make sure to have a bit of fun somewhere in there?”  
  
Taylor half shrugged. “I mean, the apartment shopping was kind of fun. I moved recently and getting it make it fully me was cool. Abigail and Matt were awesome roommates but they needed their own space and I know they want to move up to DC after graduation so it’s not like I wouldn’t have had to find a place anyway. Work is thinking about doing an open mic night and that might be fun.”  
  
Nik made a mental note to buy the mortal a denwarming gift. He could only guess what might fall into her budget and didn’t doubt it might need something to warm and ground the space in nature. “If it happens, let me know. I’d love to see you perform. Now then, have you given any more thought to where you’re going to apply after graduation?”  
  
-  
  
Taylor sighed as she left the building. She was grateful Nik kept an eye out for her and tried to help, but it was hard to keep saying no to good opportunities because of the lack of pay or hours they’d want in addition to classes and work. He never got frustrated with her, but she’d seen the disappointment for her more than once and it always felt uncomfortable. She didn’t want him to feel bad for her. She was doing okay. Sure it wasn’t everything she’d hoped for when she left for college, but she was sure she could get into the masters program and hopefully she could find something better paying once she had her degree.  
  
Thinking about work, she was grateful she wasn’t scheduled tonight but it did mean she had to get ahead on her reading while she could. Not to mention figure out dinner with whatever she had at home since she didn't get paid until tomorrow.  
  
Shifting her bag, she headed towards the library before she spotted a familiar face on the quad out of the corner of her eye. Biting her lip, she hesitated. Karlie seemed to be with friends at the moment and Taylor didn't want to intrude. But they were also dating, right? She should probably go over and say hi at least? The fact she actually wanted to at least speak to Karlie was too much of an incentive and she tentatively made her way over.  
  
“Mind if I join you?” Taylor asked nervously.  
  
Karlie looked up at the familiar voice and smiled widely. “Of course not.”  
  
“I'll see you later, Kloss.” Angelina said, standing up and making sure to give the mortal a friendly smile before leaving. She wanted to give Karlie time with her potential mate, not make Taylor feel unwelcome around the team. “Have fun!”  
  
“How were your classes?” Karlie asked.  
  
“Not bad. I have a paper for International Business Strategy and we started a new group project in marketing. I got a good partner so I think it'll go okay. It was weird though, normally I don't end up paired up that quickly.” Taylor said, still surprised at how quickly Kristine had approached her to partner up. “Yours?”  
  
“Pretty good. I have a test next week in Comparative Biology on the first couple chapters but I'm doing well so far so it should be okay. And my other class today was a lab, so that was even kind of fun.” Karlie grinned. She suddenly cared a lot more about the parts of her classes concerning mortals and their differences from wolves, and she could only see the good in that. It would help her be better at her job one day, if she really focused on understanding both.  
  
“I was thinking maybe we'd study a bit before dinner? I know it's not the most fun, but it's nice out and I know I could use some time to prepare for class tomorrow. Unless you're hungry?”  
  
Taylor shook her head. She had quite a bit of reading to do, so a little study time with Karlie sounded perfect. Best of both worlds. Time with an attractive girl who liked her, and getting some work done. She pulled out her book and a pack of colored highlighters in agreement, and watched Karlie unlock her iPad.  
  
Kristine smiled as she left her last class for the day and spotted her sister relaxing in the quad with Taylor. She didn't think Karlie was aware how quickly the mortal had become a topic of conversation. The way her sister kept looking up from her reading to check in on and watch the blonde was just one more positive sign she'd noticed. As much as she didn't want to interrupt, she did need to discuss time to work on the project with her sister's potential mate. Or at least that would be the excuse she gave Karlie rather than admitting she wanted to tug on her sister's tail a bit in front of her date.  
  
“Hey Taylor, hey sis!” Kristine gave a cheery wave as she approached. “So Taylor, I...” Kristine cut herself short, realizing Taylor had a very odd look on her face, as she glanced between the two women. Karlie had said that Taylor didn't talk about her sires or brother much but surely Karlie had talked about HER family? Hadn't she? I mean, they were both Klosses.  
  
“You're...you're sisters? Of course you are. I mean, I should have...but that means...okay. Okay. That's fine. Good, really. Oh lord.” Taylor was sure both wolves were staring at her as she muttered. Could almost picture the concerned looks on their faces. But how could she explain that she was now embarking on her third date with Karlie and only just now realizing she was dating a wolf? Or that she hadn't realized that Kristine and Karlie were related? It wasn't that it was a problem that Karlie was a wolf. It didn't change who she was. It was just, well, Taylor hadn't even dated a mortal before. And oh god, her father was just going to love this. He didn't really want her dating mortal women. Fucking lycanphobe that he was, he was probably going to disown her for good when she told him about this.  
  
“Are you okay?” Karlie asked quietly, not sure what about Kristine being her sister had the mortal so off kilter. From what Kristine had said when she asked, they hadn't interacted too much despite sharing classes for years but when they had it had been positive. Karlie had frowned at yet another confirmation of how withdrawn Taylor was. She knew it was a common enough aftereffect of pack loss, the reluctance to open up to new bonds. But it bothered her no one apparently had spotted what was happening or tried to help.  
  
“Yeah, I just need a second.” Taylor said, trying to wrap her brain around everything. She knew already that breaking things off with Karlie was out of the question. She cared about the brunette too much to consider it. Besides it wasn't like her father was providing any support anyway. But it had taken two seconds for one of the few facts about wolf sex ed her school had imparted to her other than “don't” to bring itself to the forefront of her mind. Wolves knew instantly if they were mates after sex. Taylor wasn't sure how to feel about the idea of that kind of ticking time bomb now residing in her heart. She couldn't bring herself to believe someone as amazing as Karlie could be meant for her but she wasn't prepared to give her up either. She wasn't sure what to do. She would have to ask Abigail what she thought but Taylor knew what her heart wanted already. It was telling her firmly to ride out what they have for as long as she could and to enjoy the experience while it lasted.  
  
“You didn't know she's my sister?” Kristine asked, not sure how that was possible. She knew Taylor was a little...insular, but Kloss wasn't a common surname.  
  
“No.” Taylor admits, smiling a bit sheepishly. “I know I should have. There's probably not a ton of Klosses on campus. But I just didn't put two and two together. Karlie mentioned having sisters but not names and given she never mentioned one of them shared a class with me and you never mentioned I was dating your sister...”  
  
Kristine could see it was throwing the mortal more than she would have expected and felt the protective instincts she felt towards any of her younger sisters kick in, feeling a need to soothe whatever Taylor was feeling. “How about I join you two for dinner? If you don't mind? You can get to know me as Karlie's sister and I can tell you about the dumb things she did as a pup?”  
  
Taylor was relieved at the suggestion. Now that she knew, it changed only the fact that she now realized mating was likely to come sooner rather than later. And she wasn't at all sure she was ready for that. It was a lot to take in, all at once. She was dating a wolf. A really sweet, kind, intelligent wolf who was way out of her league. But it did explain why Kristine suddenly really wanted to be her partner in Marketing class. “Yeah. That sounds nice. If Karlie doesn't mind?”  
  
Karlie didn't mind at all. It was getting harder and harder to resist the urge to mate anyway, and she knew the mortal wasn't ready for that. Apparently, she wasn't even ready to comprehend that she knew both of the Klosses attending school there? She was grateful to Kristine for her protective sisterly instincts, and how well they meshed with Karlie's alpha protective instincts toward Taylor. The two sandwiched Taylor between them, forming a barrier against the outside world as she clearly wrestled with something in her own mind.  
  
-  
  
  
By the time they swiped their cards for dinner, she seemed to have gathered herself, and was once again chatting with Kristine about their Marketing project, occasionally turning to smile at Karlie and explain something. Even more promising, her hand had found Karlie's as they walked. Whatever was freaking out the mortal, she still liked Karlie, and really, as far as she was concerned, that was all that mattered.  
  
Taylor watched as both wolves ended up with an absurd amount of protein and shook her head at herself. Really, Karlie's breakfast at the cafe should have been a clue. It also explain Karlie's concerned looks at her salad, something she was now experiencing again with Kristine joining her sister this time. She wondered if this was going to become a routine. She found she liked that concept but she just didn't know if it was realistic. She wasn’t surprised as the Kloss sisters trying to gently nudge her towards more protein packed options became one, though they might want to work on their subtlety. It was a little touching that they cared enough to try.  
  
She soon found herself sitting with the Kloss sisters at a table and wondered how she missed it. Sure Karlie was taller and had a different build but she could see the resemblance now. And from her previous interactions with Kristine, some similar personality traits too.  
  
A few of Karlie's teampack friends paused to say hi to the trio as they are, and a friend of Abigail's from the swim team. Now that Taylor was aware Karlie was a wolf, she was pleased that she had a sort-of-friend to say hi to. She knew wolves valued packs a lot. That her small family and friend group might seem odd to them. She was still amazed that this gorgeous wolf liked her. And Kristine didn't seem to disapprove. Even though she knew her behavior since realizing they were sisters had been anything but normal.  
  
She enjoyed having them both to help carry the conversation a bit while she got herself together, and without even realizing, she finished her salad. The two wolves had finished their plates as well, and she suspected the evening was going to end shortly, though she and Kristine hadn't really made any progress on their project.  
  
“I'm going to go get us all some cookies,” Karlie announced, gathering up the empty plates. “They just put out a tray of fresh rainbow chip.”  
  
“You didn't know did you?” Kristine asked gently once her sister was out of earshot. There was no need to embarrass the mortal if she was right. “That Karlie isn't mortal.”  
  
Taylor blushed and looked down and shook her head. “I completely missed it. Stupid me.”  
  
Kristine frowned at the self-deprecation. A chastising growl wanted to form in her chest, the same she would give her sisters when they got down on themselves but she held it back. She didn't think the mortal would take it how she meant it and didn't want to hurt her feelings. The concept alone was something Kristine had zero interest in anyway, having always liked Taylor even before she was dating her sister, but now she knew Karlie would be quick to kick her ass in righteous alpha fury before she could even explain. The more she saw them interact, the more she began to think Karlie may have found her mate in the quiet mortal.  
  
“Are you okay? With everything?” Kristine suspected the real answer was something along the lines of “I will be,” because although it was clear the mortal was surprised, she didn't seem upset or like she didn't want to continue the relationship. Kristine suspected this might be Taylor's first interspecies relationship, and she knew those were often tricky for members of both species.  
  
“Yeah. Yes. Karlie's so sweet. I'm really enjoying our time together. I just. I've never dated anyone before. And then to have missed something so big about someone I care about. I feel really silly.”  
  
Kristine wanted to pull the mortal into a comforting hug, right there in the cafeteria. No wonder she was freaking out. It wasn't just her first interspecies relationship, it was her first relationship, period. And given what Karlie had said about her showing signs of pack-loss, it wasn't all that surprising. Mortal relationships were messy anyways. Not feeling a clear mate-bond made them awkward and difficult. In a way, she hoped that would make dating Karlie easier on the gentle mortal. Karlie would know right away if they were or weren't. And like it or not, the mortal was now officially part of their pack. She knew their sires already wanted to meet Taylor, mate or not, and Kimby would want to interrogate her before telling her all the stories Karlie would blush over. Kariann was the shyer one, not as much as most omegas, but it was exaggerated compared with her twin's _Kimby-ness_.  
  
She didn't doubt if Karlie brought her back to the den that she'd be adopted that same night even if she wasn't Karlie's mate. Maybe it would help Taylor actually if Karlie did, Kristine thought, remembering her mother had met her father while mortal. She might help Taylor with whatever differences there were between wolf and mortal relationships.  
  
“I mean, outside of a full moon you can't really tell visually.” Kristine tried to comfort her. “And don't mortal athletes eat a lot of protein too? I can see where you could have missed it. You're not really known for attending or being aware of school sports.”  
  
_Or packs. Or social life in general_. Kristine thought not unkindly, feeling a rush of sympathy and understanding of how difficult it must have been to go through packloss almost entirely alone and then have everyone not even bother to try to bridge the gap because they read it the wrong way. She wasn't sure if Taylor was aware of the reputation that had been assigned to her but Kristine knew it was far from the truth and certainly wasn't going to be the one to tell her and risk upsetting her.  
  
She reached out and squeezed Taylor's arm gently, knowing giving her the hug she wanted to would draw attention she probably wouldn't want. Karlie would just have to deal with her older sister tagging along to walk her date home because Kristine wasn't going to not give her the hug she seemed to desperately need.  
  
Karlie finally reappeared, having been watching until whatever conversation they had been having had lulled. in addition to two cups of coffee for her and Kristine, she had made sure to get Taylor her preferred milk to go with them. She had been briefly lost when faced with the varieties before her and settled for just hoping the colours were the same no matter the brand. She had grabbed a carton the same colour as the cap she remembered seeing.  
  
“You...you got the right milk. Even though you don't drink milk. Thank you.” The mortal gave her a much larger hug than her guess at the carton had warranted, and Karlie felt good about her effort, but also wondered what exactly they'd been talking about. She certainly didn't mind, the hug was exactly what she'd wanted to give Taylor, given she'd seemed off all night, so she was thrilled to have the mortal initiate the contact. Over the top of Taylor's head, Kristine gave her a look that seemed to convey the same 'be gentle with her' message she often sent when she and the twins were playing as pups and she got a little too rough with Kariann.  
  
As she pulled away and set about opening her milk and eating a cookie, Taylor tried to ignore the looks the two siblings were exchanging. She had a feeling Karlie and Kristine were going to have a lot to talk about tonight. Kristine had been more than kind about her misunderstanding, and she knew anything she passed on to Karlie would be out of caring rather than to embarrass her, but still. She had to wonder if it would change anything for the wolf, knowing that Taylor had been blindsided by the knowledge of her species. At least Kristine didn't seem to think she was a lycanphobe. She hoped Karlie wouldn't either, now.  
  
Most of the conversation was kept light while they ate their way through the plate of cookies. She didn't miss how the sisters seemed to push most of the cookies towards her and playfully sighed at them for it. It was a good sign that her ignorance wouldn't change anything but she suspected Abigail would have two new allies in her goal of getting Taylor to eat and accept more food when they met. She'd have to read up a bit more on wolves and see if the subtle protectiveness she'd always felt from Karlie and now from Kristine was intrinsic to wolves or just Klosses. She could admit at least to herself their protective nature did make her feel just a little more safe.  
  
She was surprised when Kristine accompanied them as Karlie walked her home but found she didn't mind having the sisters bracketing her like that. The surprises kept coming when Kristine pulled her into a hug once they got to her door. She wasn't sure if the other woman was the one responsible for the rumbling sound or if that freshman was revving his bike somewhere nearby but it was actually a bit comforting. She didn't miss how she and Karlie were given a bit of privacy after Kristine bid her goodnight.  
  
If Kristine's hug felt weirdly comfortable, Karlie's felt safe. She had no problem letting it linger, enjoying being in the wolf's arms. Pulling back, she looked at the brunette for a moment and screwed up her courage, acting on the thought that had been plaguing her since the door had shut on their second date. Leaning up, she ended up placing her hand on the back of Karlie's neck to guide her down slightly into the kiss.  
  
It was sweet, and gentle, and it took Karlie by complete surprise. Not that it happened, because she wanted to kiss the mortal too. But because of how it felt. Wolf first kisses were only like that if mates met young, too young to actually consummate their relationship. Or if they were acting on puppy love, long before they imagined they'd actually find their mate. Usually kisses with that much gentleness and caring came later in mating. First wolf kisses were just a lead up to mating, and as such were rougher and needier and more urgent. What surprised Karlie, as an experienced alpha wolf, was how much she liked it.  
  
Taylor was proud of herself for making the move. She'd been thinking about it so long, and then after everything that happened that night, she wanted to make it clear that while she might have a lot to process, none of it changed her feelings about Karlie as a potential girlfriend. Mate. She rolled the wolf term around in her head. If Karlie felt a mate bond, once they finally got there, she was going to have to use the right words. And she hoped Karlie would. She could admit that to herself, with the way her entire body flooded with joy and warmth after the kiss. She hoped maybe they could be mates.  
  
“Goodnight, Karlie. Are we still on for this weekend? A real date? Maybe without your sister?”  
  
“Definitely.” Karlie leaned in for another gentle mortal-style kiss. “Goodnight, Taylor.”  
  
As she stepped away from the mortal's building door, she heard her call into the night “Goodnight, Kristine!” and laughed. Well, at least her potential mate got along with one of her sisters.  
  
-  
  
“So?” Kristine asked as the two met back up to walk home.  
  
“Have you ever kissed a mortal?”  
  
“She kissed you! Karlie!” Kristine was quite happy for her sister. Karlie might be an alpha, but it seemed this mortal was the one making the moves. Kristine thought that might be just as well, since Karlie hadn't dated a mortal before. If the mortal did the guiding, it would ensure they moved at a pace that was comfortable for both of them.  
  
“It wasn't like kissing a wolf for the first time. It was...kinda how I imagine kissing your mate is like, when you've been together long enough that you've moved past the physical. I liked it.” Karlie was glad the darkness hid her blush. Imagine. An alpha blushing every time a mortal made a move. She'd never hear the end of it.  
  
Kristine chuckled to herself, knowing that tone. She had heard it the first time Karlie ended up in puppy love, then years later the first time after Karlie had mated and come home with a hickey on her neck but mateless. That mix of preening and blushing that was so uniquely Karlie in this situations however few and far between. “You know, I haven't but that does sound nice. Different, but nice.”  
  
“It was.” Karlie said, half tempted to walk back to Taylor's door for another one.  
  
“You may have gotten yourself someone really special, Kar.” Kristine said, and watched Karlie preen over her potential mate. The typical alpha behaviour had Kristine shaking her head but also vaguely wondering if mortals had omegas because Taylor had had some characteristics of one. “I just hope she's brave. She's going to need it once Kimby knows I've met her. Kimby's not going to leave you alone until she gets the chance to interrogate her.”  
  
“She's going to have to understand this is all new to Taylor and not overwhelm her.” Karlie growled a touch protectively. She reached out and nudged Karlie's shoulder playfully in response, making her sister laugh and relax.  
  
“You know mom and dad will keep her in check. They may not let Taylor leave, but they'll keep Kimby in check.” Kristine said.  
  
“I'm going to have to warn Taylor that Mom is going to want to feed her or else it might scare her off.” Karlie half-joked, the conversation shifting to more serious matters.  
  
“She really is alone, isn't she?” Kristine asked softly.  
  
“Yeah.” Karlie sighed and Kristine could hear the heartbreak in it.  
  
“It'll be fine.” Kristine soothed, wrapping an arm around her little sister as if it could shelter her from her inner turmoil. “We know now and we'll make sure she isn't alone anymore. No matter what happens, she'll have our pack.”  
  
“Do we tell them yet?” Kristine asked after a few minutes of comfortable silence. “About the packloss? And Taylor’s lack of pack?”  
  
Karlie hesitated. On one hand, they needed to know and she knew they’d be in Taylor’s corner regardless but would do anything to help once they knew. Her father had seem packloss take too many in his line of work for the Kloss family not to take it seriously. But on the other, she didn’t want Taylor to feel like her privacy has been disregarded. And that wasn’t even getting into telling their friendpacks, the same ones who had intentionally or unintentionally made the packloss worse by ignoring a mortal in need of support. “Not yet. Maybe we could mention some of the general details but I think Taylor needs to be the one to tell her story when she’s ready. I know they’d move the moon for her if they knew, but I don’t want Taylor to think that’s the only reason they like her.”  
  
Kristine nodded in agreement and they fell into easy silence, both lost in their own thoughts of ways to help before Kristine decided to lighten the mood.  
  
“So, you're getting another date right?” Kristine asked teasingly, trying to lift the mood a little as they neared the den. “Any big plans for the third date?”  
  
“We're going hiking and Taylor mentioned going to the restaurant by the park entrance.” Karlie shrugged, trying to seem more casual about it than she felt. “We'll probably take it from there and see how it goes.”  
  
“You could also have Mom help make you a picnic basket. Find a nice romantic spot and just enjoy each other's company.” Kristine suggested. “You know Mom would love to help with that and if you find a good spot it'll probably be more romantic than a crowded restaurant packed with holiday weekend tourists.”  
  
“That’s a great idea. Homemade is nicer anyway. And I know Taylor wanted to treat, but...” Karlie wasn’t sure how to broach the fact she suspected the packloss had also led to some serious money problems. She wasn’t sure it was her place to say anything to Kristine when the two were just bonding.  
  
“But you have a whole pack behind you with loads of resources and it seems like maybe Taylor doesn’t. I’ve noticed she never brings a laptop to class, even though nearly everyone does. And her coffee is always either in her own mug or in a cup from the Diner. I suspect that’s more from making it at home than concern for the environment. It’s okay, not everyone has a sire like ours, or our resources. She’ll like the picnic. She likes YOU.” Kristine grinned, jostling Karlie’s shoulder.  
  
“Hope so.” Karlie offered a small smile back. “I really like her. I know she might not be my mate, but, I feel like there’s a better chance than with any of the others I’ve courted. Do you think that can be a thing? Knowing even when you haven’t mated so you can’t possibly know?”  
  
Kristine thought for a moment. “Yeah, probably. I think that’s what it’s like for mortals. They get a feeling and act on blind faith. So yeah, I think you could know before you know.” _I just hope you’re right, because you’ve got it bad for this one._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all, thanks for bearing with me yet again. Here's the latest installment of I've Been The Prey, brought to you by a state mandated day off due to plague. It's a one off though so only the gods know when I'll find the executive function to finish the next chapter but I promise I'm trying. Stay safe everyone!


	7. Art Classes and Impromptu Dates

Taylor shuffled into the studio, unsurprised to be met with the almost empty studio. Other than the chairs and easels surrounding the table that had been thoughtfully cushioned with the sort of foam padding you’d find on a gym floor, there was just Professor Artem fussing with the space heater again. Even though, she was too far away to hear her, she was sure the older woman was muttering under her breath any number of threats at it. “Not winning today?”

“Not today, no. Thankfully it's not winter yet, but today may be a bit cool for you.” Professor Artem said without even turning around. “I'm working on getting the department to give me funds to replace it, so hopefully you won't freeze come winter.”

“If nothing else, it'll give them angles and texture to work with.” Taylor quipped, earning an amused snort. They both knew there was an even chance the Professor would be left trying to keep the space heater going come winter. For all the money the school had, it was still like any other university in that most of it went towards the sports programs. She'd imagined it'd be quite different if anyone involved in budgeting had to be the ones modeling in the chilly room. “I'll go put my phone on the desk and then change.”

Getting nothing more than a vague wave in response, Taylor shut her phone off and set it on the desk before ducking into the changing area set up in the corner of the room. It'd been a long time since she'd felt nervous removing and folding her clothes into a neat pile before slipping on the robe meant to help keep her more comfortable in the cool room until it was time to pose.

From the other side of the curtain, she smiled at the familiar sound of footsteps against the linoleum and then the pause and huff as they read the demand written at the front of the room to turn off their phones and place them on the desk. Taylor had never had a session where someone had even glanced at their phone, but Lavena was notorious for not even allowing the possibility of an nonconsensual photo.

Beginning to stretch, having learned quick it was better to before sitting for such a long stretch, she half-listened as Lavena began her “Welcome to Anatomical Drawing” lecture for yet another class. Absentmindedly, she wondered what this one would be like. Some classes were quiet, others were more chatty and open to asking for certain poses. There were always a few blushers for the introductory classes like these, something Taylor had long gotten over. Abigail might still balk at the idea of nude modeling, no matter how much Taylor made per hour, but for her it just wasn't a big deal anymore. Most of the students were fine arts majors or the occasional pre-med, with the exception of the few who'd chosen something different to fulfill their needed art credit. To them, she was just another body. One of a few that rotated through the different courses, letting them experience a variety of body types and anatomy.

Taylor smiled hearing the trepidation in one artist's voice. Must be their first time with a live model, she thought. There were always a few. She'd never forget the time a very conservative young woman who was doing a fine arts degree at the Christian college across town had sat in on the class. The only nudes she'd ever seen had been in sacred art from centuries past. The poor girl had thought life drawing would be drawings of plants, or maybe pets. Seeing Taylor disrobe had definitely been a shock. She'd bravely stuck with the class, though Taylor and her fellow models had all come out looking like so many Barbie and Ken dolls.

She laughed along with the more experienced members of the class as the professor joked that this was the one time no one would think it odd if they took their time examining the model. And it was true. Taylor had once spent ten minutes while a girl in a painting class tried to mix the exact right pink for her nipples by standing up close and holding her brush next to the anatomy in question. She'd appreciated the Professor offering that Taylor's natural lip color was likely to be a good match, more for how the artist blushed than for the fact itself.

Hearing her cue, Taylor came out of the dressing area in just the plush robe and walked into the rest of the studio, not really paying attention to any of the students. She'd get familiar with them soon enough. She'd just removed and handed Lavena the robe, glad the old space heater was keeping the slight chill in the room off her for now, when she heard a clatter.

Turning her head automatically, she was almost sure her jaw literally dropped at the brunette sitting at the easel. In her years of doing this, she'd somehow never actually had someone she knew take it. It was something she hadn't even thought to worry about after multiple years of it, even if it had seemed such a serious consideration when she first started. Not many music majors took these classes and even fewer business majors would consider it. It was only her luck that the first person she knew outside of class would happen to be her maybe-girlfriend.

Trying to shove that aside, even as she felt herself flushing for the first time in years, Taylor attempted to settle herself onto the table and into a pose that let her watch Karlie from the corner of her eye without giving her too much of a show just yet. Was the wolf weirded out? Did she have an issue with this? She knew a lot of mortals wouldn't be thrilled at the idea of their date nude modeling. She could only imagine some mortal guy getting huffy about it or a girl developing a case of raging jealousy. But she knew wolves weren't as monogamous or shy with their bodies. Not until they mated anyway. To her relief, Karlie didn't appear angry or jealous. In fact, she'd guess the brunette just might be blushing too, though she seemed to be trying to push past that and settle into sketching.

Karlie had known, of course, that there would be nude models. She was taking the class, after all, because she was pre-med, and medicine involved both a lot of nudity and needing to know what normal looked like on a variety of shapes and sizes of both mortals and wolves. But oh dear Moon that was Taylor. She was torn between feeling like she was violating her maybe-future-mate's privacy, seeing all of her before she'd chosen to share it privately, and being quite intrigued by what she saw. She didn't love how much shading she would have to do around Taylor's rib cage, or the prominence of her collar bones, but she definitely appreciated the curves she did possess. Even more so the confidence she displayed here that was sometimes lacking in other situations. It was nice, seeing her potential mate take ownership of her body. She liked seeing another side of her, and not just the one that was under her clothes.

Karlie knew she wasn't by any means a great artist, but she thought she'd done reasonably well. And had done so without embarrassing herself or snapping a pencil. She'd certainly had motivation to give it her all, wanting to do Taylor justice. These would be drawings she knew she would be hanging onto and keeping someplace well protected. Once the class was over, she packed up and watched Taylor slip the robe back, shooting her a shy smile before disappearing into the curtained off area. She wanted to make sure Taylor wasn't embarrassed but also, Moon forbid, didn't think she was a creeper and taken this class knowing she'd be one of the models. Not that she was too concerned given that she'd gotten a smile.

She hung out by the door, waiting for a now clothed Taylor to join her. Some part of her observed Taylor was every bit as gorgeous in her university hoodie and jeans as she was out of it and she mentally shook her head at herself. She really did have it bad already. “So, how do you feel about impromptu dates? I know a place with great desserts nearby.”

“I love dessert. And impromptu dates.” Taylor offered another smile, watching as it seemed to drain the last of the nervous tension from Karlie’s body. She really was quite pleased that Karlie had stayed after class. Better to talk about it now than let anyone stew over it until their next date.

“I didn't know you modeled. I mean, I can see why they'd want someone so gorgeous as the model but...I mean...” Karlie didn't quite know how to say what she wanted to without it being weird. This was new territory, even for her. None of her research on mortal customs had prepared her for this. Hell, most of the reading had suggested they were far more reserved with their bodies with only a few exceptions.

“You think I'm gorgeous?” Taylor tried not to sound too incredulous. “But yeah, it's not really about what you look like, the department doesn't care. It pays really well for an hour or two's work. One time they even let me pose with my laptop so I could work on a paper, and I've posed with books before as well if a test was coming up. It's not a bad way to multi-task. I've been doing it since freshman year.”

Karlie nodded. That explained the confidence. She knew she would be unnerved if they asked her to do the same, even having been told by more than one lover she had nothing to be ashamed of. She admired that Taylor could do it so effortlessly. “I liked it. Not what we were doing, that didn't matter, but that you were so confident. I honestly didn't know it would be you.”

Taylor offered a reassuring hand squeeze. “I know you didn't. Everyone in class knew you didn't. You should probably know that I'll be your model for a few more classes this semester. They always have a harder time finding them first semester. I was the only freshman to sign up my year. I'm just glad you don't mind.”

“Mind? What right do I have to mind? We just started dating Taylor, and even if we hadn't...” Karlie wanted her to know that it was her body, her decision, no matter what the question might be.

Taylor smiled, relieved to hear that response but also somehow not surprised by it. Leaning up slightly, she kissed her, keeping it short and soft before pulling back. “Thank you. For being understanding and, well, you.”

Before Karlie could respond, Taylor tilted her head towards the exit. “You said something about dessert?”

Karlie grinned widely at that, glad she'd apparently navigated that well. She didn't doubt if she said the wrong thing, it could have gone badly. Very badly. “It's good thing I drove here today. It's a bit too far to walk there but the food is worth it.”

Taylor leaned against Karlie slightly as they walked, enjoying the comfortable silence with her date and the slight warmth she radiated after spending a couple hours chilled in the studio. The arm that wrapped around her in response made her bite back a grin, both at the gesture and the realization that somehow she’d become part of one of those couples. 

She wasn't surprised in the slightest when Karlie immediately opened the door for her once they reached an old jeep. She hadn't been expecting it, but the moment she'd moved to do it, she thought she should have. There was something that was so Karlie in it. A casual consideration and unpretentious chivalry. She wondered if it was something Karlie had picked up at home and could almost picture it. She might not have ever seen a picture of Karlie as a child, but it was so easy to imagine her watching her dad and making it a point to copy him.

Karlie's radio immediately broke the comfortable silence they'd fallen into as soon as the ignition turned over. 

“I LOVE this song!” Taylor exclaimed, turning it up and singing along. It seemed Karlie was in for two surprises that night. She'd seen the guitar in the corner of Taylor's living room, so she knew the blonde played, but she'd had no idea she could sing like that. It was just a pop song, one Karlie had never paid much attention to, but even as tone-deaf as she was, Karlie could tell that Taylor's voice might just be better than the artist's. “Sorry, I just...when it's your jam...I'll stop singing now.”

“No, don't. You're good. I don't even really like that song, but I like it when you sing it. I know you're a business major, but do you do anything with music?” Karlie felt like a door was opening to yet another new facet of the woman she was quickly becoming attached to. She also felt bad that she'd never really asked. Music was one of those things that lots of people were super passionate about, but since Karlie couldn't sing to save her life, she really only paid attention to if a song was good for a workout or dancing around in the kitchen while cooking with her mom and sisters.

“It's my double, actually.” Taylor caught the grimace on Karlie's face and hoped she was reading it right. “It's okay you didn't ask. They're kind of an odd pair. But it could work, after all, marketing makes great use of music when it comes to jingles or the backing music in an ad. Music is my passion. Business is the thing that will pay the bills.”

“Sounds like something you should definitely pursue. I think you might be the only person on the planet that will have more free time AFTER college than in it, but I really hope that once you can focus on work and not balancing work AND school, you'll have some time to put into it if it's what you love.” Karlie had seen how both of her parents loved what they did, and she wanted nothing more or less for herself, her future mate, and the members of her pack. Of which Taylor was one, regardless of their mate status or lack thereof. In the back of her mind, it made her all the more pleased she'd dedicated herself to medicine. She hadn't ever gone into it for the money, but she knew roughly what her sire earned. It'd always had been a background consideration that she could support a family on her income. She knew of all the common alpha sins out there, pride was definitely one she was guilty of. But for the first time, she really thought about what that meant. The sort of future and opportunities she could give Taylor if they were mates.

Taylor smiled to herself, pleased at Karlie's apparent belief in her despite having never seen her play and the seemingly endless source of encouragement she'd become. Maybe she could play for her at some point? Taylor shoved away the idea of playing solo for Karlie and potential others in the far future. She knew better than to get her hopes up like that. Better to focus on the now, while it lasts.

Discussing what music they liked, and being shocked to discover Karlie didn't listen to many newer artists, carried them through the rest of the drive. Taylor was just promising to put together a playlist to start Karlie's “music education” when they pulled into a parking spot.

“If you put one together, I promise to listen to it.” Karlie said, wondering if that would be like a mixtape. Should she try to make a playlist as well? Damn it, why hadn't she listened to more of her sisters' music? Deciding that was a problem for later, Karlie jumped out of the car and half-jogged around, wanting to get there before Taylor could open the door. She ended up finding the mortal waiting for her, giving her an amused but indulgent look.

“I figured if I tried, you'd be mortally wounded.” Taylor joked dryly.

“As I will be if you don't let me pay.” Karlie quipped, ignoring Taylor's eye roll. She hadn't disagreed after all, and that was what Karlie found important.

-

Karlie only half paid attention to the dessert menu she was skimming, knowing already what she would end up ordering. The blonde across the booth was far more interesting, especially the way she bit her lip and her nose scrunched slightly as she went through the menu. Karlie knew she was probably debating what she wanted and, knowing her maybe-mate, also the price even though she'd said it was her treat.

She wished Taylor would realize she didn't care if she ordered the most expensive thing on the menu. Hell, that'd be amazing progress, Karlie thought, already expecting a brief showdown over the bill. She knew her date was stubborn and proud. Something more than one member of her family had been quick to comment were qualities she also had in abundance. Still, it would be nice if Taylor would let her actually take care of her a bit. Karlie worried already, knowing Taylor didn't have seemingly any close pack outside of Abigail and was entirely on her own financially. Remembering how thin her possible mate was beneath her clothes, made her frown to herself. At least she was treating Taylor now. Maybe she could convince her to order something large? With ice cream? And maybe “split” a milkshake?

Those thoughts were quickly replaced with the rest of the class though and Taylor's comments she'd be modelling for her class a few more times. Moon help her if those classes happened to be anywhere near the full moon. She knew she should be viewing the model as just a body to study, and normally she would, but it wasn't just any body. It was her potential mate. Her gorgeous potential mate for once completely confident and owning the space she resided in. If Taylor had any doubt about her being an alpha, there'd be no missing it then.

“You didn't warn me it'd be so hard to decide.” Taylor mock scolded, having finally narrowed it down to two options but being stuck from there.

“Well, if you're just down to two, we'll get both and share them. And maybe a third because you didn't mention it but this one is also to die for,” Karlie offered, pointing at her own favorite, the chocolate tuxedo cheesecake. Well, her favorite here. Nothing beat her mom's apple crisp or pumpkin loaf.

“Well, then we have to get that one, and since it looks like chocolate overload, maybe skip the regular chocolate cake and just get the strawberry shortcake with yours? I can't eat half of three desserts, delicious though they might be.” Taylor didn't want Karlie to have to skip her favorite, but just the idea of eating all that sugar made her feel slightly nauseous.

Inwardly, Karlie shook her head, but a part of her realized that a dessert and a half probably WAS a lot for the mortal. “Okay, but we're getting the ice cream on both, and lots of whipped cream.”

“Deal,” Taylor smiled. THAT, she could work with.

Karlie smiled, a pleased rumble going through her chest at getting her date to eat something actually substantial even if it wasn't the healthiest choice in the world. It was still a victory. She playfully wrinkled her nose as Taylor ordered a glass of milk to go with their desserts along with coffee.

“What?” Taylor defended, “It's a mortal tradition for something that chocolatey!”

“It still just reminds me of being sick as a pup.” Karlie shrugged, ignoring Taylor's eye roll. Any sting the gesture could have had was negated by her sticking out her tongue right after. “Very mature.”

“That's why you l-like me.” Taylor said, stuttering slightly as her brain just caught itself before she could slip. No. Nope. Not happening. Not when there was no guarantee Karlie was hers to keep.

That it still didn’t dampen the feeling the ran through her when Karlie casually said it was just one of many reasons. From anyone else, Taylor would write it off as just a line but she could see in Karlie’s eyes that she meant it. Even if she was refusing to label her own feelings, she knew what they were. Knew that she was in for a heartbreak if Karlie was meant for someone else.

Before she could get too caught in her own head, Karlie broke through with questions about music. When she started playing and how. Did she write her own music? Had she ever thought about recording.

To her own surprise, most of the memories had lost their sting. Instead she was able to recall fondly that Christmas she got her first guitar. Her mom taking her to record demos. Playing in bars she shouldn’t have been old enough to walk into and the small thrill she got each time. But remembering why it all changed and everything that followed still stung. Still felt too heavy for the light atmosphere of their impromptu date. She knew it was a part of her past she would share with Karlie eventually, but just not now. Maybe another night, when they could sit on her couch and Taylor could break out the photos she didn’t look at as often and Karlie could hold her like she could protect her from her own past.

Thankfully, Karlie seemed to accept her changing the subject to her other hobbies before it got too heavy. She talked about her occasional attempts to paint, how her enthusiasm seemed to outstrip her skill but she loved learning anyway. It was kind of Professor Artem to let her take some old supplies, in addition to what the university paid for her to model, and it was cathartic, in a lot of ways. She enjoyed the conversation even more when she flipped the topic back on the brunette. She’d have never guessed Karlie used to do cheer until high school. Or she’d hated running at first but had done it for an outlet after she got too tall to dance. That she’d done a bit of modelling until she’d graduated and made the choice of medicine over fashion knowing she didn’t have time for both wasn’t a huge surprise. It made sense someone would have spotted her and thought she could be a model.

The conversation only paused when their waiter returned with their desserts and refills for their drinks. Taylor really should have known Karlie wouldn’t pick a place with small portions but she was still surprised at the size of their cheesecake slice and shortcake. At least the amount of whipped cream was just as large.

Karlie smiled at the small pleased sound Taylor made over the strawberry shortcake, trying not to think about when the mortal probably last let herself have a treat like that if she was enjoying it so much. She really needed to find a way to convince Taylor to meet her pack. She knew, from movies and shows, it was pretty early for mortals to do that sort of thing, but Taylor deserved to have a good pack around her. That her parents would adopt her on the spot and refuse to let her leave until they were assured she'd been properly fed had nothing to do with it.

Any planning got quickly wiped away as Taylor took her first bite of the chocolate tuxedo cheesecake. She'd been prepared for Taylor's pleased sound and even the way her tongue darted out to catch any cream or chocolate sauce lingering on her lips. But nothing prepared her for Taylor actually moaning over the dessert.

Bless the moon for not being full. Karlie mentally groaned, her chest rumbling for a different reason. Reaching for her coffee, she tried to distract herself and get a grip. She reminded herself again mortals moved slower and Taylor didn’t deserve to feel rushed. But she was making it harder than it was before...

Okay, poor word choice, Karlie admitted to herself, cringing slightly. While that wasn’t an issue at the moment, she was sure if Taylor kept reacting like that, she’d find herself taking a cold shower anyway.

“Okay, this is worth every calorie.” Taylor said, swallowing the bite and then following it with a sip of milk.

Karlie knew it would be too much to ask after the two of them managed to decimate the majority of two desserts for Taylor to let her treat her to dinner, too, but she still had to ask. After all, she herself was planning to knock out at least a couple burger patties when she got home, if for no other reason than to counter all that sugar. But the look of nausea that flashed across Taylor’s face at the idea of eating more food seemed genuine, so Karlie had to settle for walking her back to the car, pulled close against the chill creeping into the air as the sun set. 

“Thanks for coming with me.”

“It was fun, Karlie, and delicious. I've certainly never spent an afternoon after modeling like that before. Abigail tried to get me drunk after the first one, but...it's not the same, you know?” Taylor grinned. 

Karlie laughed. “Shouldn't you have done that BEFORE class?”

“That's what I said!” Taylor relayed the story of how she'd told Abi that first class that if she was going to drink underage, she might as well do it BEFORE the class to calm her nerves, but it had taken until after for her roomie to find someone willing to buy them booze. Taylor wasn't much of a drinker before or after, though she didn't hate a glass of white wine now and then when someone else was buying, but it was still a fond memory, both of them thinking they were drunk after one and a half Mike's Hards apiece.

Karlie wasn't much of a drinker either, with running and med school always at the back of her mind, but she filed away the story as something new and cute she didn't know before. Perhaps one day when neither of them had responsibilities, they'd have to hit up a party and let loose a little. Most moon parties held some form of booze, and it meant Taylor wouldn't have to worry about cost. Nor would they have to worry about getting home safely, all moon parties had shuttles to make sure everyone had a sober ride. Yes, Karlie nodded to herself. If they were still together, even just as friends, for the next moon party, she was definitely taking Taylor.

Driving Taylor home, she’d given the mortal the aux cord buried in the center console and told her to play her something she liked. She was surprised to learn she'd grown up on a Christmas tree farm in Pennsylvania before her pack had moved to Nashville just before highschool as Cowboy Take Me Away played in the background. Stories of her and Abigail and and their fast friendship to I Write Sins Not Tragedies. Though the song choice itself surprised her. She’d have never guessed Taylor had an emo phase. It had taken everything she had not to growl as she reluctantly talked about her signing along to You Learn after learning Agron had bet about getting her in bed in her freshman year because it was better than giving anyone the satisfaction of crying over it. As much as it hurt her to hear it, it also made Taylor’s slow pace and wariness of some of the wolves on campus make so much more sense beyond just a lack of experience and an introverted nature and she didn’t doubt that’s why the blonde even told the story. They’d just wrapped up a much lighter story of her mom driving her home in the early morning hours from a bar show a couple hours away and the two of them loudly belting along to How To Save A Life to stay awake when they arrived at Taylor’s apartment.

As much as Karlie wanted to go up, she also knew if she did she wouldn’t want to leave. Not to mentiom Taylor had a morning shift before classes. With great reluctance, Karlie only went as far as walking Taylor to her front door. Just because she found it hard to resist the mortal didn’t mean she was any less inclined to make sure she got home safely. 

Karlie had certainly been hoping for a goodnight kiss, but that didn’t mean she had expected it to last as long as it did. Not that she was complaining. Far from it. But as she walked away from Taylor’s apartment, she knew three things. First, that she was definitely going to need a cold shower...or maybe a long hot one. Second, that if just kissing Taylor felt like that, then mating would be well worth the wait. Third, that she apparently possessed reserves of patience and self control her sister would proclaim didn’t exist and she herself hadn’t known she possessed. It helped, she supposed, she knew with certainty Taylor was every bit as interested. If she didn’t fuck it up, they’d likely get there when Taylor was ready. It wasn’t as if she wasn’t enjoying herself in other ways in the mean time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> An update within a month? We're shocked too!


	8. The Third Date

Karlie wasn't sure why she was as nervous as she was. Sure it was the third date, but it was Taylor. Besides she wasn't even sure it was their third date. Had dinner with Kristine counted? She knew that night after art class probably did. But what about all the times they'd studied on the quad or the time or two they'd met at a coffee cart for the few minutes between classes? She knew that was just part of courting for wolves rather than specific dates but did those count for mortals?   
  
At least all the time together meant she knew they got along well and she really liked her so it shouldn’t be a big deal. Besides she was pretty sure that while it was the third official date, it wasn't _that_ date. Maybe it was all the expectations that came with the date in mortal culture getting to her? Wiping her hands on her pants, she wondered how mortals dealt with this all the time.  
  
She wished she’d thought to ask her mom earlier, when they were shopping for the picnic. She certainly couldn’t do it now with all her sisters sitting at the breakfast bar. Kristine might be sympathetic but Kimby wouldn’t let her hear the end of it.   
  
She knew she’d have to make it a point to thank her mom again later for her help. She knew she got a lot out of it as well. She’d enjoyed breaking out Gram’s recipes and the bonding time it’d given them. But Taylor’s relationship with her pack, or more accurately her lack of talking about their bond, had made her appreciate her own all the more.  
  
“Do mortals really eat that?” Kimby asked as she packed the container. “It can’t be healthy.”  
  
“I mean, you wouldn’t want to eat it breakfast, lunch, and dinner.” Tracy said. “But it’s not terrible for them in moderation. Actually they’d say the same about us an a bacon cheeseburger. The pasta salad has some good fats. And meat can be added to it - sopressata, mortadella, salami, ham - but not everyone does that or likes it so I left it out.”  
  
The rest of the selections drew less comments. Kimby had been disappointed to learn it was a mortal angel food cake, but took the fact the sweet tea was fine and there was more than could fit in the thermos as a good enough consolation prize.   
  
“What are you going to do with the rest of it?” Kariann asked, looking at the sizeable amount of cake left.  
  
“Oh, I’m sure I can find a recipe for it online and your father can take it into work.” Tracy said. “It’s a big enough hospital I’m sure it won’t go to waste.”  
  
“How come Karlie gets to eat some if its mortal-style?” Kimby wasn't giving up without a fight.  
  
“Because I run track every day, and I'm balancing it with plenty of meat, that's why,” Karlie retorted, booping her little sister on the nose. “Also, mom won't be there to stop me, though honestly more than a couple bites will probably taste too sweet and carby anyway.” Karlie glanced after the clock on the microwave. “Shit, I should get going, I don't want to be late. Sorry mom,” she added as an afterthought as her mom glared at her for the language. Not that Kimby and Kariann hadn't heard it before. “I'm not sure when I'll be back tonight, but I promise I'll tell you all about it in the morning, okay? Love you.”  
  
Karlie grabbed the packed basket and gave her mom a quick kiss on her cheek on the way to the car. If she didn't hit too many lights, she'd maybe even be a minute or two early to Taylor's. She said a silent 'ha' to all the haters who told her she couldn't be on time for anything. She could. It just took the right event. It had to be worth it.  
  
She was pleased that there wasn't much time between her knocking and Taylor answering the door. She liked to think Taylor had been looking forward to this as much as she had been.  
  
“Hey, come on in for a second, I was just filling up a couple of water bottles for us.” Taylor greeted Karlie with a hug and a small kiss before ushering her into the apartment. The bottles were the plastic reusable ones the university gave out on orientation day, but Taylor had filled them with ice first so they should last a while on the trail. Karlie was pleased that they'd both planned ahead. Taylor had been thinking about this too.  
  
“Great, thanks!” Karlie noticed Taylor also had a small backpack sitting on the counter, presumably holding her sunscreen and maybe a light jacket in case it was colder in the shade. The trail wasn't at a super high altitude, but they were the Great Smoky Mountains, so temperature changes did happen.  
  
She watched as Taylor bent down and carefully laced up a pair of worn Nikes then hopped to her feet. “Ready?”  
  
Karlie watched, with a bit more attention than she expected, as Taylor locked the door to her apartment. She definitely felt the urge to protect her, that was clear. They chatted a bit about their mornings as they descended the stairs to the parking lot.  
  
A pleased rumble went through her chest at the indulgent but happy look on Taylor's face when she got the car door for her. She knew some things were good manners in both cultures but knew some, both wolf and mortal, thought some of them old fashioned. But they were gestures Karlie enjoyed, especially when she could direct them towards the blonde.  
  
Getting into the car, she could tell Taylor had noticed the picnic basket in the back. “I know we said we'd eat at the restaurant nearby but I thought a picnic might be nice. My mom was mortal before she and my dad married so she helped and made sure there was more than just meat in there. Is that okay?'  
  
“Karlie!” Taylor squealed, “you didn't have to go to so much trouble. The restaurant would have been fine. But of course it's okay. It's really sweet, actually.” Taylor leaned over and planted a kiss on the wolf's temple to show her appreciation. She knew the wolf had picked up on just how limited her finances were, but she'd saved enough she hoped she'd be able to cover both of them for lunch, especially since Karlie was driving and had paid for their previous dates. Now, it appeared, she'd have to reciprocate another way.  
  
The parking lot was pretty full when they arrived at the trailhead, not surprising for a beautiful Saturday afternoon, especially on a long weekend. Still, with the variety of trails, they knew there would be plenty of privacy to talk and enjoy the scenery and each other. Karlie was again favorably impressed with Taylor's choice of date. It was, she imagined, chosen for her benefit. Although the mortal might like hiking, it was a favorite of both species, everyone knew wolves particularly enjoyed it, since these were the mountains they tended to run on the moon. It was a comfortable place for them, sort of homey. Karlie reminded herself to let Taylor set the pace, having already agreed on the trail. She would enjoy it no matter where they went, because she was with Taylor, but if she'd chosen too difficult a trail or went too fast, she risked forcing Taylor to keep up, rather than letting her also enjoy the experience.  
  
Taylor knew her date was keeping a slower pace for her and was grateful for it. She wasn’t out of shape, used to walking everywhere, but despite all the beautiful trails nearby her work and school schedule didn’t allow her as much time as she would have liked to explore them. She'd picked this trail knowing that other wolves from school liked it, she'd heard them talking in class on Mondays about having visited over the weekend. It seemed like a good choice for the two of them. Lots of time to talk, but also something physical so they didn't have to force conversation.  
  
A mile or so in, they came to a more open bit, where the trees were less dense and the sunlight could reach the forest floor. “Oooh, wildflowers!” Taylor exclaimed, snapping a pic with her phone. “They're so gorgeous!”  
  
Karlie smiled at her delight, almost childlike. She watched as Taylor examined a few at the edge of the trail, not wanting to wade into the deep grass in her tennis shoes and shorts. It was smart to avoid going too far off the trail, there was a risk of ticks, especially in this area. It was part of her family's after-moon ritual to check each other, just in case, and she appreciated that the mortal also knew the risk and was being safe. Not that she'd have minded checking her, you know, for safety.  
  
Karlie realized she'd been a bit distracted, because now her mortal was approaching, one perfect yellow daisy in her hand. “A beautiful flower, for my beautiful date.” Tucking the daisy behind the wolf’s ear, it took Taylor a moment to realize this was the first time she’d seen her fully blush. It was, Taylor thought, the most precious thing she'd ever seen and she made a note to try and bring it out more often.  
  
She knew she was getting more comfortable with the wolf, but she was surprised to find just how easy it really was to be with her. As they continued the hike, Taylor found she was comfortable talking with her about just about anything as long as it didn't stray towards her family. It was an ease she'd only previously felt with Abigail and Austin, a natural chemistry and safe feeling. Karlie didn't even seem to mind too much when the conversation got turned back on her when family did come up. It seemed her date understood her reluctance to talk about it even if she didn't know why, but was still willing to expand on Taylor's knowledge of her own pack. The more Karlie talked about them and herself, the more Taylor found herself wanting to know. It would be interesting, she thought, to see Karlie being poked at by Kimby or talking science with her father. And Taylor already knew Kristine, but getting to know her a little better wouldn't hurt. Not to mention the questions she'd like to ask Karlie's mom about mortal and wolf culture. She knew of course when wolves found their mates, the mortal would begin to go through the process to become a wolf. But she hadn't actually known anyone who had gone through. Not that she knew of anyway.  
  
Karlie had just finished a story of Kariann's long but ultimately successful campaign to earn the trust of a horse so she could learn to ride when they reached a clearing.  
  
“I was thinking here for our picnic.” Karlie said, hoping Taylor liked it. She'd tried to pick it with the mortal in mind, making sure it was short grass and dirt to try to avoid the ticks that infested some of the taller grasses and wildflowers. It was close enough to the creek that Taylor should be able to hear it and they had the option of sun or shade cover.  
  
“It's perfect.” Taylor said, “I'm surprised another couple hasn't taken it already.”  
  
“Guess we got lucky.” Karlie said, not about to tell Taylor she had hiked up here earlier and tried to pump enough pheromones out at the perimeter and entrance of the clearing to hopefully keep it on reserve until they got there. She was glad it was so close to the full moon or she might have had to ask her sisters for help. She loved them, but she didn't want to have to drive Kimby off to get a moment alone with her date, and she knew Taylor would be polite enough to let them join them. It wasn’t a guaranteed thing. She was sure enough wolves would have ignored the scent marking, alpha or not, and mortals would be oblivious to it. But she thought it was the best compromise. There were other spots on the trail after all and she thought most couples would try to sit directly by the creek.  
  
She set down the picnic basket and pulled a large blanket out of her pack. Picnics were a common Kloss family event, especially as they approached the moon. It was a good way to get some pack time in, and they all appreciated that even more than usual as a moon approached. She knew that part of why they were so amiable in letting her have a date with Taylor this close to the moon was the fact that they all suspected that Taylor might be her mate. Karlie was certainly hoping so, at this point, which was partly what made it possible to let the mortal lead when it came to actually mating. If she didn't care a great deal about her, she likely would have broken it off by now. She knew better than to pressure anyone into mating, but especially a mortal.  
  
Once the blanket was out, Karlie began unpacking the lunch options. Taylor was reminded how strong her date was, seeing the wide variety of options being unloaded. There was tea to drink, still cold in it's insulated bottle, and more water for them both as well. She knew Karlie's mom had to have contributed the sweet tea, as she now knew it wasn't as common a wolf beverage. Though they'd somewhat adopted the unsweetened version, since it was, essentially, fancy leaf water. There were three different kinds of sandwich fillings, which she assumed were for Karlie's benefit rather than hers. She'd have eaten any of them, turkey, ham, or roast beef, but she figured Karlie would likely eat one of each, or maybe just combine them into one. She'd brought a bag with several slices of crusty bread and a pack of low carb wraps that Taylor assumed were Karlie's preferred choice. There were small packets of condiments, so she could add what she liked, as well as a tupperware full of lettuce, cheese, tomato and onions. To go with the meal, there were cut up veggies and ranch dressing, kept in it's own ice pack, as well as a pasta salad she knew was just for her, since wolves didn't really eat pasta. It was, however, delicious, and she told Karlie as much.  
  
“Thanks. It's my grandma's recipe. We don't get much use out of it, but I think Mom was pleased to get to pull it out.” Karlie smiled. Her mom had been pretty eager, really, to help her get food together for her date. She suspected even her Mom was hoping this one might be her mate even without having met her.  
  
Taylor watched with a mix of amusement and disbelief as Karlie spread a thin layer of mayo over her wrap before piling meat and cheese onto it with a few of the vegetable toppings scattered on top. She might have questioned the healthiness if it were anyone else, but she knew from the bit of reading she’d done the combination of protein and fat was exactly what her date ran on. Really, Taylor didn’t doubt she’d have just had the meat and cheese rolled up if it weren’t going to be messy and they weren’t on a date.  
  
“I’m surprised you bothered with the wrap.” Taylor said.  
  
“It’s easier to eat it like this and trying to fit enough into a lettuce leaf without it breaking or spilling is a pain.” Karlie explained.   
  
They’re conversation slowed as they ate, both of them enjoying the comfortable silence, only broken when Taylor jokingly offered Karlie a bit of the pasta salad. She she was surprised when the wolf decided to eat it, watching her face. “Not what you were expecting?”  
  
“Not really my thing. The flavours are good. My mom does a version with sliced zuchinni instead of noodles and a lot of cubed meat. But the pasta would mostly make me feel sick if I ate too much.” Karlie explained.  
  
“So you guys don’t eat pasta but you do eat baked goods?” Taylor asked.  
  
“A lot of our desserts use nut flours. And some of the newer sweetners, because they’re just as sweet but don’t make us feel as bad afterwards. Like the cheesecake we had after art class. That was one of our recipes while the shortcake was one of yours. The stuff from mortal places is usually a rare thing, and we eat pretty healthy if we’re going to have it. At least my family does, but when your dad is a doctor that’s hard to avoid.”  
  
“So those cookies you brought to the library?” Taylor asked.  
  
“Were really for you. I had one and a bit just because you seemed reluctant unless I took one. And I had one when I made sure to make sure they tasted okay.” Karlie shrugged. “I know mortals are more likely to have nut allergies.”  
  
“I don't, for the record. Have a nut allergy, I mean. Though you probably figured that out when I ate some of your cake at the dessert place. But I appreciate you looking out for me.” Taylor smiled, thinking of the concern Karlie had shown for her even when they barely knew each other's names.  
  
The topic of food carried them through the rest of lunch, Taylor and Karlie comparing their childhood staples. Taylor hadn’t thought about the fact Karlie wouldn’t have grown up eating pb&j’s or grilled cheese. The kids menu for picky eaters for her had been grilled chicken and cheeseburgers. Peanut butter had still featured, ants on a log it seemed was a universal kids snack. But while an apple had been a healthy snack for her, for Karlie and her sisters it had been a sweet treat.  
  
For dessert, there was a bowl of fruit, some cubes of angel food cake, and, bless her, a can of whipped cream though this one advertised it was sugar free. Taylor knew Karlie had little idea how big of a weakness that was for her, even after their last date. She didn’t know yet she would have gladly eaten that, and only that, for dessert. She insisted the wolf make her shortcake first, not surprised now when it was more fruit than cake. She tried to be restrained while applying her own helping of the sweet cream, but Karlie could already tell she was a fan and insisted she take more. Once the fruit and cake were gone, Taylor reluctantly capped the can. It wasn't, um, ladylike, what she wanted to do with the rest.  
  
They moved everything a little more into the shade while they rested for a bit and let their food settle. Once Karlie had gotten comfortable, Taylor cuddled against her with some encouragement from the wolf, feeling content as they were. They laid there in comfortable silence, Taylor smiling as Karlie began playing with her hair. For such a simple date, she couldn’t imagine a better one than a picnic lunch and getting to cuddle in the shade of a tree and just talk. She didn’t think there was anything cuter than they way Karlie would talk with her hands during parts of a story she felt strongly about or the way she’d occasionally take the flower out of her hair and gently spin it between her fingers. She found she couldn't entirely relax though, the fact it was the third date lurking in the back of her mind. She knew wolves didn't have that but it was such a well known concept she'd be surprised if Karlie didn't know about it. Was she expecting them to mate? Would Karlie be disappointed if they didn't? She didn't realized she'd begun to tense up until Karlie broke through her thoughts, “What's wrong?”  
  
“Nothing.” Taylor said immediately, too used to not opening up.  
  
“Tay.” Karlie said softly and Taylor could hear her frown. She knew Karlie needed to know where she was at but god she wished it was less awkward to talk about it. Still, Karlie deserved her honesty. If this was going to be a problem, wasn't it best to know now? She wasn't sure she wanted to know at all if it didn't go over well, as much as she trusted her date.  
  
“It's the third date.” Taylor said.  
  
“It is.” Karlie said, trying to sound casual. She didn't want her tone to make Taylor think she expected anything. Not if this conversation was going where she thought it would.  
  
“It's just...” Taylor sighed and tried again. “I'm not...It's not...”  
  
“We don't have to do anything. Just getting to take you out on a date is amazing. If anything else happens, it'll happen in it's own time and when we're both comfortable.” Karlie said, trying to soothe the blonde's worries.  
  
“It's not you. You're amazing.” Taylor said, blushing but relieved. “I'm just, I haven't done the whole dating thing before let alone anything else. I'm not there yet.”  
  
“Taylor. It's fine. Only you know when you're ready. I'm quite happy getting to spend time with you until you are. I hope you know, even if we don't turn out to be mates, you're important to me, right?”  
  
“You're important to me too. Which I guess is why I really want it to be right, when I'm ready. Thanks for understanding.” Taylor cuddled in just a little closer, knowing for sure that it wouldn't be interpreted as the lead up to anything she wasn't ready for. She wondered if all girlfriends were this easy to talk to, and this communicative. Not having really dated, she didn't know, but she doubted it. It seemed pretty likely that Karlie was special. Especially given she'd just unwittingly laid to rest another of Taylor's worries. That they'd mate, and not actually _be mates_ and that she'd never get to hang out with her again. But Karlie said she mattered even if she wasn't her mate, and that was incredibly reassuring. She was starting to understand why wolves valued friendpacks so much. Abigail was awesome and would always be her best friend, but she was looking forward to spending more time making friends with more of Karlie's friends, and Kristine, and maybe the other Klosses. She never would have guessed _that_ freshman year.  
  
Karlie was pleased she'd learned enough in sex ed, and from her mom, and from mortal movies, to understand how first times were for mortals. It was a much bigger deal for them than for wolves, and so she was prepared for Taylor to have reservations. She was just thrilled that the mortal trusted her enough to talk about it, instead of maybe going for it because it was the third date, even if she wasn't sure. Given that after, Taylor wouldn't know if there was a mate bond or not, she knew that had to be a concern as well. She was once again relieved not to be a mortal.  
  
They spent a bit longer cuddling in the shade, talking over whatever came to mind but nothing serious after the discussion they'd just had, before it started to get too cool as the afternoon passed. Feeling Taylor shift further into her warmth and the beginning of goosebumps on the mortal's arm, Karlie carefully sat up. “We should probably pack up and hike back down before it gets too late. I know this trail pretty well but hiking it in the dark probably still won't be fun for you.”  
Taylor reluctantly got up, knowing the brunette was right even if she would have been content to stay like that for a while longer. She helped Karlie fold the blanket and expected that to be that until Karlie spoke, “You may want to put your jacket on until we get back down. It's only going to get cooler.”  
  
Admitting to herself she was right, Taylor dug it out of her pack and playfully rolled her eyes when Karlie helped her with it. She suspected if it had been anyone but her date, she'd have found the move old fashioned and unnecessary but on the wolf it was charming even if she still teased her about it.  
  
“Is this where you usually come on the full moon?” Taylor asked as they walked down.  
  
“Not this trail specifically, but we're usually somewhere in the mountains. We're lucky to be so close to them. I know in other places some of the packs can feel a bit cramped when wanting to run around. I think the last time we weren't was a few years ago. Kariann had a nasty bug and we ended up keeping to the den so she didn't tire herself out and end up worse.” Karlie said.  
  
“I can't imagine being in a place like LA or New York during the moon.” Taylor said.  
  
“From what I've heard, most of the packs end up having to drive a couple hours out.” Karlie said. “I know some packs that have to do that in Nashville too. Drive to one of the national parks or designated safe parks in town.” Karlie said, shaking her head at the concept. “We're lucky here, I guess. It's been a wolf area for so long no one blinks at us running down the streets on a full moon or even ducking into a shop. I know a few people with packs over there have said some of the mortals get twitchy if we're too visible on moon nights and even call the cops.”  
  
Taylor felt her stomach knot, remembering the time her dad had done just that, stating the wolves had no right to run amuck and howl at all hours just because they couldn't be civilized. She wasn't sure what had happened, but remembered her and Austin sharing disapproving looks and having to leave before starting an argument they wouldn't win. What would Karlie think if she knew her parents, but especially her father, were some of those mortals? She'd always been ashamed of their views but the more she got to know the wolf walking beside her, the more she failed to understand how they could be so bigoted.  
  
“Yeah, I've heard of that happening in majority mortal neighborhoods. Dumb. Mostly wolves are really respectful anyway, so I don't know why some people have to be so uptight about it.” Taylor sighed. “I'm really glad you and your pack have places like this to come. You get the best of both worlds. A good city like Knoxville, and plenty of space to run at the moon.”  
  
Taylor shuddered a bit, and, thinking her date might be chilly, Karlie wrapped an arm around her. Taylor couldn't say she minded, although her thoughts weren't so much on the weather as on the fact she was supposed to go home to her family the next day, and she was dreading it even a bit more than usual now, thanks to the way she felt about the wolf carefully walking her down the mountain. She knew Karlie could see better than she could in the dark, especially as the moon approached, and was grateful for her guidance. Not to mention there was something very safe and comforting about having her there, even though it wasn't nearly full dark yet.  
  
Taylor found herself wishing they hadn't gotten back to the car so quickly. The up and downside of letting Karlie lead and her knowledge of these mountains was that they'd taken a much shorter route back down than they'd taken up. Which, for safety, was for the best. But Taylor wasn't ready for the date to end yet.  
  
“I was kind of nervous to suggest this before we talked, but, when we get back, do you want to come up to my apartment and watch a movie or something?” Before Taylor would have worried Karlie would take the invitation as the prelude to something more, but now that she'd put it out there she wasn't ready for sex, well, she hoped maybe it could just be what it was. Two girls who really liked each other watching a movie.  
  
Karlie grinned. “Definitely!” She knew that she'd probably just get cuddles out of it, but that was still kind of perfect, as far as she was concerned. The two spent the rest of the way back to Taylor's trying to decide on a movie to watch, and ended up settling on a throwback - The Parent Trap. It seemed fitting to watch a camp movie when they'd spent the afternoon outdoors, and there were even a few hiking scenes. Nothing suspenseful, but it would make them both laugh a bit.  
  
They weren't more than halfway through the movie when Karlie heard and felt Taylor's breathing pattern change. Glancing down confirmed what she already knew, her date had fallen asleep on her. A happy rumble went through her, glad the mortal felt safe enough to fall asleep in her arms. She smiled as Taylor seemed to cuddle further into her in response to the sound. She knew she should get up. Taylor would probably sleep more comfortably in her bed and she might prefer if Karlie didn't stay the night. But she couldn't bring herself to wake her, not when Taylor looked completely at ease, something she didn't seem to be often enough for Karlie's liking. And, if Karlie being honest with herself, she just plain didn't want to go. Her instincts wanted Taylor close as often as possible as the moon drew nearer, the safety and happiness of the blonde weighing heavy on her mind. She couldn't pass up the chance to spend a night with the mortal, even just sleeping. The only moving she did was to pull her phone out of her pocket and turn it on silent before shooting her family a quick text. She knew her parents didn't care if she stayed out, she wasn't a pup anymore. But she also knew they were expecting her and would worry. After a moment's debate, she snapped a quick picture of Taylor. She wasn't sure if the blonde would mind, but she hoped not. Taylor simply looked too content with her to not want a photo of it. And it rounded out her camera roll nicely, she thought, showing the end to the day documented with a series of photos they'd taken on the mountain. Setting her phone on the coffee table, she shifted into a more comfortable position before finally reaching for the throw over the back of the couch and carefully draping it over Taylor. “Goodnight, Taylor. Pleasant dreams.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So...we know it's only been like...a week. BUT here's an update anyway. Don't get used to this. Seriously, look at our previous update history. Don't set yourself up for disappointment if you're new here.
> 
> That being said thank you to everyone who's read and liked it or left a comment! Your feedback is great motivation to keep going!


	9. The Nashville Trip

The last thing Karlie expected to wake up to was an alarm blaring. She didn't have early practice today so why did she set an alarm? It took a second before she became aware of a weight on her chest. She blearily took in the room and needed a second to place where she was, helped greatly by the head on blonde curls resting on her. She sleepily grinned. Sure they hadn't mated, but getting to wake up with Taylor, even to an alarm, felt pretty good.  
  
Taylor groaned against her, protesting the alarm. “Too early.”  
  
“You set it.” Karlie said softly.  
  
She watched as Taylor shot up, looking at her for a second before realizing they were on the couch. “We fell asleep?”  
  
“Best sleep I've had in a while.” Karlie said, earning a kiss to the cheek and a muttered explanation of morning breath before Taylor turned off the alarm. “I hope that wasn't your need to leave alarm.”  
  
“No, it was my get up and debate if I'm really going to go alarm.” Taylor snarked slightly, burying her face back into Karlie's shoulder.  
  
“As much as I support going back to sleep, they are your pack.” Karlie said.  
  
“I know. And I haven't seen them since before school started. But it's three hours away, and I'm only going for the day. Six hours of driving for six hours of family time.” Taylor tried to keep her tone light. Karlie wouldn't understand. Wolf values were so different. No self-respecting wolf-pack would pull all financial support from a pup for the minor sin of loving the same sex, from what she'd heard. Apparently, thanks to the innate mate bonds wolves felt, they had always supported same sex unions, as long as the mate bond was present.  
  
“I'll make coffee and food, you go shower and get ready.” Karlie was already digging through the fridge, pleased to find breakfast sausage in there, though disappointed in how little there was. But there were eggs and shredded cheese and she supposed that would make enough protein in a pinch.  
  
“Just coffee!” Taylor called from the bathroom. “The whole point of the trip is brunch!”  
  
Karlie put the eggs and cheese back, just frying the sausage and starting coffee. Taylor couldn't really be planning to drive three hours with nothing more substantial in her stomach than coffee, could she? She needed a snack. Not to mention that Karlie herself was starving. Remembering that mortals liked portable food, and also carbs, she located a tortilla in Taylor's fridge and warmed it a bit in the leftover sausage pan, wrapping it around a couple sausage links and some cheese. She couldn't bring herself to eat much of Taylor's food, so she ate just a couple herself, putting the rest away for later.  
  
When Taylor emerged, dressed for the day in a slightly preppier than usual skirt set, hair carefully blown dry, it was all Karlie could do not to give in to the rumble forming in her chest. Taylor was absolutely stunning. “I made you a little snack. You can't actually drive three hours on nothing but coffee. Although that's ready too.”  
  
Taylor grinned. She'd known she couldn't fully dissuade the wolf, whose own nutritional demands made her constantly side-eye Taylor's own selections. But the sausage wrap was sweet, and portable, and accompanied by a large travel mug of strong coffee, allowed her to get out the door by 7:30, right on schedule to make it to Nashville by 10:30.  
  
She knew the wolf would consider the lingering kiss thanks enough, but that wasn't about to stop Taylor from saying it. She didn't want Karlie to doubt how much she appreciated all her sweet gestures, even if she rolled her eyes at some of them. She'd been lucky enough to find a very sweet girlfriend, but in her opinion a slightly over concerned and protective one.  
  
She wasn't surprised at all when she was walked down to her car. She didn't notice Karlie doing a quick circle of it while she was leaning into the car to put her coffee in the cupholder and frowning at the tires. Making sure her wrap was also in reach, she turned around and wasn't surprised to be pulled into the wolf's arms for a moment. “Well, I guess I'm set.”  
  
Karlie knew she should let Taylor go but couldn't help pulling her in one last time. Even though she was only going to be gone a day, Karlie still wanted to keep her close. She thought it might be the instinct to mate poking at her, stronger after having spent a night with the blonde curled up against her. Feeling Taylor try to cuddle in a little closer, even nuzzling slightly against her shoulder, Karlie was helpless to stop a rumble going through her chest even if she kept it from escaping her mouth. She tried to be as subtle as she could, breathing in Taylor's scent even though she knew she was covered in it. “Text me when you get there and when you get back?”  
  
“I promise.” Taylor agreed, guiding the wolf down into a final kiss before somewhat reluctantly getting into the car.  
  
  
-  
  
Every head turned to her when Karlie entered the front door.  
  
“What are you doing here?” Kimby asked as the same time Kristine asked, “Where's Taylor?”  
  
“She had to go see her pack in Nashville.” Karlie said, toeing off her shoes.  
  
“I'm sorry, sweetie. I know you really liked her.” Tracy comforted, disappointed it apparently hadn't been a match. She could see the confusion on Kristine's face and wondered if she had two heartbroken daughters. Her eldest had been so sure of the match.  
  
What none of them expected was to Karlie to be so upbeat when she turned around. “We don't know yet.”  
  
“But the third date -” Kimby started.  
  
“Not universal.” Karlie said.  
  
“You were gone the entire night.” Kimby accused.  
  
“We fell asleep watching a movie. I got to spend a little time with her before she had to go. We'll have another date next week and she should be back tonight or maybe Monday morning. Said she might stop by practice if she gets back in time.” Karlie said, smiling at the memory of the stolen morning with Taylor. She hoped she got a lot more of those. “Now. I'm going to go shower, and then I need about twelve pounds of bacon.”  
  
Karlie knew that the moment she left the room, her mom and sisters would hold a conference. It was inevitable. So she figured she might as well leave them to it, hoping that at least they could maybe make breakfast while they discussed the oddities of dating mortals and what it meant that they hadn't mated. It meant nothing more or less than that she'd done her homework about mortal mating, and had discovered that since the instincts weren't the same, the concept of consent was very important to them. Wolves could just feel it, but mortals sometimes had to talk it out first. And Taylor had said she wasn't ready to mate yet. So, until she was, Karlie was going to wait. Even if it meant a little extra personal time in the shower in the meantime.  
  
Once she had pulled on some yoga pants and a tank top, and thrown her wet hair into a bun, she headed down to face her pack, and their questions. But it appeared that her mom, maybe with Kristine's help, had tamed Kimby's enthusiasm a bit. There was a pile of breakfast meat on the table, and all four of the other women in the family were just sitting down with fresh mugs of coffee.  
  
“You really like her, huh?” Kariann was the quietest of the sisters, but also the one with the best knack for reading others. “You wouldn't wait for just anyone. Not like this.”  
  
Karlie had to agree, really. They didn't have the mate bond yet, because they hadn't mated. But she still felt a pull and a connection that she'd never felt to anyone before, wolf or mortal. There was something about Taylor that said it would be worth it.  
  
“Now, I know you girls don't really want to think about your father and I mating, but for the record, it was well after the third date. Leave your sister alone. I'm proud of her for respecting that Taylor is mortal and does things differently. I think sometimes you girls forget that when your father and I met, I was a mortal.” Karlie was very grateful to her mom for reminding them. And herself. If she ever had any concerns or questions, she knew she could ask her mom. Even if it was a little embarrassing to talk to her parents about mating questions, between her mom being a former mortal and her dad being a doctor, she knew she could. She'd sensed that Taylor wasn't so excited to go back to her pack, and that there was more to the reluctance than the drive. She just wished she knew what it was. But no matter how much they got to know each other, her pack was one area where Taylor remained closed off.  
  
She hoped it might help a bit that Kristine was trying to establish a bond with Taylor. One she knew her sister intend to develop come what may. And Karlie knew the moment she could convince Taylor to come to her den and meet her family, they would adopt her. Not to mention feed her, Karlie thought, already wondering how many containers of leftovers she could convince the mortal to take and how many more she could slip into her fridge without Taylor noticing or at least not getting mad at her. Plus she hoped Taylor would turn up to practice and she could settle the last of her teampack's concern and hopefully start integrating a larger extended pack into Taylor's life.  
  
It may not get Taylor to open up and Karlie knew it wouldn't fix the pack loss. Nothing really cured that, except time and being integrated into a new bloodpack through something like a mate bond and that's if you were lucky, but it could help. Karlie knew she would do just about anything if it would help the mortal.  
  
“Hey dad, do mortals have second genders?” Kristine asked, hoping the question came off more casual than it was. She didn't want to get Karlie's hopes up and she knew mortals could be weird about alphas and omegas since it didn't come naturally to them. But the more she thought about it, the more signs she saw.  
  
“No.” Kurt shook his head. “At least not the way we do. There's no difference in biology that anyone has been able to find for mortal secondary designations. Some people think they might exist psychologically, and I've met a mortal or two who would lend that theory credence. But no one had ever done a study.”  
  
“So you think it's not impossible but it's not obvious if there are?” Kariann asked.  
  
“I think the majority of mortals, if they do have second genders, tend to be betas. Even more of a majority than our population. But I think it's possible some small percentage would qualify as what we call alphas and omegas.” Kurt said.  
  
“What brought that on?” Kimby asked.  
  
“My marketing project. We have to outline how we would market an assigned product or service to mortals vs wolves. Taylor and I decided to break it down a little more to designations for wolves and I was curious if we could do the same for mortals.” Kristine half-lied. It was close enough to the truth it would settle any suspicions for Karlie.  
  
-  
  
She had barely made it outside of Knoxville when her phone rang. Answering it and getting on speaker safely was a bit more interesting than she would have liked, but she knew who it was and that they wouldn't give up. “Hey!”  
  
“How did it go?” Abigail asked immediately.  
  
“How did what go?” Taylor asked, taking advantage of being to far away for Abigail to retaliate to her teasing.  
  
“Tayor!”  
  
“It went well.” Taylor laughed.  
  
“How well?” Just her tone made Taylor blush slightly.  
  
“Not _that_ well.” Taylor mumbled, the phone microphone barely picking it up.  
  
“So what happened?” Abigail asked. Taylor didn't sound crushed like she expected if she and Karlie weren't mates or had broken up but given she could hear road noise and no one else was speaking, she was confused. She knew Karlie wouldn't have wanted Taylor to leave her side if they were mates and Taylor wasn't about to introduce Karlie to her family.  
  
“We went on a hike. Karlie was really sweet. She brought a picnic her mom helped her make and a blanket and we ended up finding a clearing and just talking until it started getting dark. I, uh, I told her I wasn't ready to mate and she was really good about it.” Taylor said.  
  
“Mate?” Abigail asked, her tone surprised. Not just because of Taylor's word choice, but also that Karlie apparently hadn't blinked. It wasn't that she thought the wolf was the sort to be pushy it's just....she was a wolf. And an alpha. Waiting that long wasn't a thing in their culture. She'd heard plenty of her wolf teammates say how weird they thought even waiting to the third date was. Apparently it was time to meet Taylor's girlfriend officially because it was a lot more serious than she thought.  
  
“That's the word they use.” Taylor said, a tad defensively. “Anyway, I invited her back to watch a movie and we cuddled. Actually, I ended up falling asleep on her. Literally. She ended up sending me off with a sausage wrap and a thermos of coffee.”  
  
“Awww, that sounds sweet! When do I finally get to meet her, anyway?” Abigail knew Taylor had met Karlie's sister Kristine before they even started dating, and since Austin was the only Swift likely to get an invite any time soon, she figured it was her duty as best friend to check out the woman who'd finally broken through some of Taylor's walls.  
  
“I'm thinking about going to her practice on Monday. I guess some of the other mates do that a lot, and sometimes they all eat after? Do all teams do that, or is it a track thing?” Taylor honestly had no idea what constituted normal when it came to wolves or sports. At her old high school all the football players' girlfriends wore their jerseys to games to show they were dating, but that was about it. And that was at a majority mortal high school as well.  
  
“Yeah, a lot of the mates come to swim practice as well. Matt included. He likes to take photos, and then he shares them with the mates. So, what, like after practice?”  
  
“Yeah, I figured maybe you and Matt could come? I know sometimes the teams intermingle and that way it's more casual, like how I had dinner with Kristine and Karlie in the cafeteria. We're not even mates yet, me and Karlie so...” Taylor trailed off, knowing Abigail would know what she hadn't said. That if they didn't turn out to be mates at all, she didn't want them to have gone through this extensive 'meet everyone' ritual for no reason.  
  
“Just let us know the time and place and we'll be there.” Abigail promised, keeping her thoughts that Taylor might not have anything to worry about to herself. If Taylor didn't want to acknowledge Karlie being so willing to wait might mean something, well, Abigail knew her friend would already be crushed if it didn't work out. She didn't see a reason to raise her hopes higher than they already were.  
  
The conversation turned more casual after that. Work and school and Matt's latest cooking failure. They'd wrapped up the conversation about an hour into the trip, Abigail saying she'd promised Matt she'd go to some photography exhibition he'd been interested in. The rest of the drive was spent bouncing between radio stations and cursing holiday weekend traffic and people who didn't know how to drive. As much as she tried to distract herself, her mind kept returning back to a certain brunette and as happy as that train of thought made her, it also left her wary. She was already too attached to the wolf. What was she going to do if afterwards, Karlie looked at her and told her the bond wasn't there. Before she could dwell on that thought any longer, her heart already aching, she finally cleared the highway.  
  
Taylor wondered if any of the wolves coming home for a visit began to feel anxious as they crossed city line. If they felt any dread when they pulled into their neighbourhood and drove through manicured lawns and McMansions knowing their car stuck out like a sore thumb. Knowing what she did of their culture, she strongly doubted it.  
  
Taylor felt the weight in her stomach solidify as she pulled into the driveway next to her brother’s truck. Shutting off the car, she gave herself a moment to prepare for the weekend. She loved her family, she did. Or, at least, she loved what they'd been once. She just didn’t want to endure endless picking over her choices. That she would get the sort of support her brother got. As much as they'd always claimed to love them the same, the difference could be seen right there in the driveway. She didn’t want Austin’s pickup. It wasn't like she needed a brand new jacked up truck. But looking at the pinstriping and tinted windows next to her ‘07 civic that had been definitely seen some miles and was in need of new tires before winter drove home that she’d never been the daughter they wanted.  
  
 **I made it safely.** Taylor sent telling herself she was just fulfilling her promise. She wasn't quite ready to admit, even to herself, that just texting her girlfriend gave her a bit more strength and courage.  
  
 **Good! Have fun with your pack!** Taylor almost snorted at the message. She was definitely never letting Karlie meet her family. She'd hate to blemish her blind belief in family. Taking a final deep breath, she put her phone on silent and got out of the car. Walking into the house, she wasn’t surprised to hear noise coming from the dining room. Of course they’d already begun brunch.  
  
-  
  
“Thanks for waiting.” Taylor muttered dryly to herself. She didn’t even consider actually saying anything to them, knowing her dad would just remind her Austin had had practice that day...or the day before...or this week. Whatever would justify being unable to wait for their daughter to get home.  
  
“You're late.” Taylor supposed there could be more malice in the tone, really. She knew there were kids with even worse relationships with her parents than she had.  
  
“I'm sorry. There was an accident on 40. Besides, you said ten-thirty and I believe it's only quarter of eleven? I'm not THAT late.” She hurried to hug Austin, leaving her dad for when he'd gotten over the slight delay in her arrival. He would. Eventually.  
  
She barely had her plate loaded with roasted pepper frittata and a blueberry muffin, and was reaching for the bacon when her Dad spoke. “You know, if you went to Vanderbilt like Austin, you'd have been able to sleep in a bit. You could have gotten in. Your grades, frankly, were better than your brother's.”  
  
“You know perfectly well why I thought University of Knoxville would be a better fit for me.” Taylor tried to choke back the sigh. They wondered why she rarely visited. Four years of this had been incredibly draining.  
  
“They have QSAs at _normal_ universities now. Don't they Austin?” Her father's voice always had that edge when he used the word normal to mean mortal. As though kids hadn't stopped saying that decades ago. Polite society had ditched that even before they mostly agreed to stop using gay to mean bad.  
  
Austin's mouth was full of muffin when he replied, “Dad, Knoxville IS a normal university. A good one, too. Their sports medicine program is better than ours. And yeah, Vandy has a GSA but it's not quite the same as going to a school that doesn't need one, you know?” He offered a supportive smile to his sister, then shoveled in another mouthful of muffin.  
  
Taylor was grateful Austin got her. He could have been bitter about the way his parents hopes and dreams had been dumped on his shoulders when she came out at age twelve, but instead he'd always taken her side against them. Even though her mom had been better, she tended to let Scott take the lead. And now that it was just Scott, well, Austin tried to help where he could, knowing that while he benefited from a full athletic scholarship including room and board AND his support, she was barely making ends meet with only an academic scholarship carrying her tuition, and working to cover the rest. It wasn't fair, but there didn't seem to be anything he could do to deter him, or make him see that whatever he was doing wasn't going to change who Taylor was.  
  
“How can anything ever change if you run away from the problem?” Scott asked, and Taylor almost rolled her eyes at the predictable path this conversation was taking. “Anyway, all I'm saying is a degree from Vanderbilt would carry a certain prestige. As long as your grades are up to scratch, I'm sure they would accept you into their graduate program with the right recommendations.”  
  
Taylor knew the only reason her eyes hadn't rolled out of her head by now was years of practice. “Knoxville has one of the best business programs in the country. Period. You know they're on par with UPenn or MIT.”  
  
“Then why not attend one of those?” Scott suggested. “You're not thinking this through, Taylor. What are employers going to think when they see the sort of university it is?”  
  
“That a dual culture background and focus in a degree would make me a more competitive and well-rounded candidate.” Taylor said, almost hearing Scott's blood pressure rising.  
  
“She's right, Dad. They've done studies and people with degrees that have focuses on wolf and mortal cultures are more lucrative and tend to earn more than those whose business studies have a mortal culture only focus.” Austin said and then asked Taylor, “Have you thought about a comparative cultures minor?”  
  
“I'm pushing it with my music double.” Taylor shook her head. She had thought about it. “If I qualified for a another scholarship or two I might have.”  
  
“Austin, why don't you tell me about your first game?” Taylor decided for a last gasp subject change before it could turn into World War 3. She wanted to actually have the option to visit on Thanksgiving. Not that she was sure she wanted to come, but she couldn't abandon Austin.  
  
The rest of the meal went about as well as any with her family. Austin's game had gone well and the Commodores had been victorious. He was looking forward to the annual cross-state rivalry game that would bring him to Knoxville, and he was enjoying being back on campus. As long as Taylor stuck to talking about her Marketing class, making friends, and the things she and Karlie had done without mentioning that her new friend was a girlfriend, things went okay. Walking around her old neighborhood with Austin was honestly her favorite part of the trip home, and he knew it. He knew she wouldn't actually accept money from him, so while she and her mom made dinner, he took her old Civic to fill it up with gas, change the oil, and check things like the windshield wipers, brake pads and headlights. He didn't feel an ounce of guilt putting it on his dad's card. She'd figure it out, of course, but hopefully she'd be back in Knoxville by then and out of hitting range.  
  
Dinner was nearly silent, the family having settled into the sort of silence they often favored, because the choices were silence or argument. Being gay wasn't a choice, the way her father seemed to imply, but being lycanphobic was, and for some reason, he seemed determined to ignore the fact that modern society had abandoned that kind of segregation and bigotry ages ago. And so they chewed their chicken in silence, the one concession Scott made to show he did actually retain some love for his firstborn a packet of leftovers placed in an insulated bag for the return trip home. Austin received a similar package that mysteriously found its way into her back seat.  
  
“Please be safe driving back, Taylor,” Scott cautioned. She didn't miss that he'd softened his tone. He loved her. He just had odd ways of showing it.  
  
“I will. Love you dad. See ya bro.” Taylor gave a final round of hugs before getting in the car and beginning the long drive home. Once she was out of Nashville, she was tempted to call Karlie, slightly to her own surprise, and for the first time regretted that her car hadn't come with bluetooth given it's age and she'd never bought the radio adapter for it. It might be nice to have company on the drive but she didn't feel comfortable trying to dial out with traffic like this.  
  
By the time she got back, she was a little disappointed it was too late to invite Karlie over without implications about her intentions. Not to mention she was pretty sure her girlfriend had an early practice tomorrow. Maybe she would set an alarm and go watch. A dose of sunshine might help after a very frustrating day. Before turning off the car, she looked at the fuel gauge, trying to figure out how screwed she was.  
  
At first she thought it was broken before she realized what had happened. That was it, she was going to kill her brother. That was a promise she renewed once she went to put her leftovers in the fridge. She loved him for caring and supporting her without conditions, but she wished he didn't have to worry about her.  
  
Someday maybe he wouldn't. She'd get her degree at the end of this year, and hopefully turn that business degree into an actual career. And, for the first time, she began to think maybe she wouldn't have to be married to her career. It wasn't that she hadn't been asked out before Karlie. She'd turned down that pretty wolf from the theater department because she had a bit of a rep for chewing up sweet young mortals and spitting them out. And there had been others. But none of them had immediately given her the warm feeling she got from Karlie.  
  
-  
  
Taylor gratefully sank into her bed, taking a moment to revel in being back in her home without any judgmental comments or family pressure. Remembering her promise, she sent Karlie a text to let her know she'd made it home safe. The last thing she had been expecting was a knock at her door thirty minutes later.  
  
 **It's me.** Taylor frowned, not sure why her girlfriend was at her door. Was everything okay? Getting out of bed, she'd barely opened the front door and invited the wolf in before she found herself in her arms.  
  
“Sorry, I wasn't planning on coming over. I just...I needed to see for myself you made it home safe.” Karlie said, breathing in Taylor's scent. She felt herself relax fully for the first time since Taylor had said she was heading back. Seeing her girlfriend in her den had helped, but Taylor's scent surrounding her soothed her last concerns.  
  
“Is everything okay?” Taylor asked, guiding Karlie to the couch.  
  
“Yeah, just with the full moon coming up, you know?” Karlie said, knowing this wasn't something the mortal was used to dealing with. “Our instincts get stronger with the moon, and one of mine is to protect the people I care about. That includes you.”  
  
Taylor smiled shyly at that, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear and ducking her head to hide the pleased blush. Once she was sure it had faded a bit, she looked up and asked, “You know, it's not that late. Since you're here, do you want to stay for a bit? We can put something on and cuddle on the couch?”  
  
Karlie smiled at the idea, thrilled Taylor wanted more time with her too. Letting Taylor pick something, Karlie got comfortable and waited for the mortal to settle against her.  
  
“You wanna talk about your trip home? It must have been nice to see your pack.” Karlie didn't want to push things, but she was genuinely curious why Taylor never talked about them. All she knew was it was a small pack, just sire, dam and a brother, and that she'd gotten from the single photo of the family at Taylor's high school graduation and a few comments about Austin here and there.  
  
“Um, yeah. My family isn't much of a pack. We used to be, years ago. When I was little. But...now we're more like three people that sometimes eat together because the world expects us to. Even Austin and I aren't as close as we were.” Taylor sighed, waiting for Karlie to fill in the blank she'd left her.  
  
Karlie’s breath caught as she realized what Taylor had said. Three. But there were four in the photo. Oh. That explained the packloss. But which parent? And how? And...she had so many questions, but she knew she couldn't push it. This was the first time Taylor had opened up to her about this. So she went for the obvious. Making her voice as gentle as she could, she asked “Three?”  
  
“My mom died the summer before I started college. She had cancer. Metastatic breast cancer that ended up in her brain. She'd battled for years but it seemed like things were going okay until they suddenly were not, at all, okay. And then she was gone.” Taylor was crying a little, tears running into Karlie's t-shirt. “She was the one that supported me. My dad...he doesn't really understand me. He thinks being gay is a choice and the wrong one. And he's conservative about a whole host of other things too, in all the worst possible ways. He wants what's best for me but he has the most fucked up idea about what that is. So it's me and my brother against him, but mostly me. I...I'm sorry Karlie. This isn't what you came here for.”  
  
Karlie emitted a comforting rumble. “I came here to support you and make sure you were okay. It's okay that you're not. You don't have to be okay all the time, especially about something like losing your mom. I wouldn't be able to handle that at all, and I would have my whole pack with me.”  
  
The two women sat in silence, Taylor trying to staunch the flow of tears, Karlie trying desperately to find something that might make her maybe mate feel even a tiny bit better. Absently, she pressed a kiss to the top of Taylor’s head. Pleased by the murmur of appreciation, she moved down to Taylor’s temple. And then her nose. And then finally, her lips, soft and gentle.   
  
Taylor pushed them apart. “I like where this is headed, but I need a second to clean up first, okay?” She headed into the bathroom to wash her face and blow her nose before returning to her spot next to Karlie on the couch. “Now, where were we?”  
  
The kisses started they way they had been before. Soft and sweet, with Karlie holding her gently. Like she worried she might break her. Something about that bugged her. She knew how much Karlie wanted her. At least she thought she did. She was a wolf, of course, but it was more than that. She hadn’t missed the look in Karlie’s eyes after some of their goodnight kisses.   
  
Taylor was pretty sure Karlie hadn’t been expecting her to take the intiative, judging by the way she hesitated as Taylor deepened the kiss. It was only when Taylor bit at her lip and earned a growl that sent a shiver down her spine that things changed. Karlie’s grip became firmer and her hands more confident and not a moment later Karlie was securely in control of the kiss. Felling Karlie’s hands roam her body over her clothes quickly wasn’t enough. Thankfully, Karlie had the same idea and barely broke the kiss long enough to touch the hem of her shirt. Before she could even ask, Taylor panted “God yes.”  
  
Taylor wanted to be annoyed by the proud smirk that flashed across Karlie’s face but settled for kissing it away instead. It’s not like she could blame her when she’d gotten her so easily worked up. Karlie’s hands on her skin felt better than they had any right to and she wasn’t sure if that was her lack of dismal lack of experience or Karlie was just that good. Some part of her brain, the part that was focused on _more_ and _don’t stop_ , remembered that Karlie was a probably very experienced alpha. Right now she really wasn’t complaining if this was the result of that experience.  
  
Before she knew it she was straddling Karlie's lap with her hands on her breasts and her mouth finding places on her neck Taylor didn't know existed. Some part of her knew they needed to put the brakes on soon but right this second she was enjoying herself too much. The last thing she expected was to feel something there as she ground down into Karlie's lap. She felt like a bucket of ice water had been thrown on her. Was that -  
  
“Karlie?” Taylor asked nervously.  
  
Karlie's hands quickly removed themselves from under Taylor's shirt after she broke the kiss. “What's wrong? Was that too far?”  
  
“Um, no, not really, it's just, um, well...I don't know how to ask this so I'm going to make a stupid joke. Is that a banana in your pocket?”  
  
“Um, what?” Karlie hadn't heard that joke since middle school. But why? Oh. Oh right. Josalynn had mentioned that Taylor might not know about that at practice. Well, she supposed there was no time like the present. “You know werewolves start to change a few days before the full moon, right? Like my eyes go from green to hazel to a true amber, my muscles get more defined and stronger, I get a little fuzzier, and my sense of smell gets stronger, among others, right?”  
  
Taylor nodded, “Uh huh.” She'd observed some of those things with her own eyes after three years at Knoxville. And the others were things she'd heard about. But at no point had she heard about _that_. Had _that_ always been there? How had she not noticed?  
  
“Okay. Well, you know about second genders? How wolves are male and female like humans, but then there's a further subdivision beyond that?” Karlie had no idea how much Taylor knew or how deep this lesson was going to have to be to get to the part she needed to get to.  
  
“Yeah. Alpha, Beta and Omega. Beta is the most common one, right?” Taylor was quite sure of the first part, but she wasn't quite so sure about the greek letters and which was which. This was worse than all the Alpha Zeta Theta whatevers at mortal schools.  
  
“Right!” Karlie hoped she sounded encouraging. “So, I'm an Alpha. Basically that means my instincts lean more strongly towards protection but also competition. Alphas tend to be the more forward partner. We tend to be a bit more take charge both with our mates and packs and also in life. Our pheromones tend to be different from a beta's. Not stronger, just....you can tell. I can't describe it. Other than that there's not too much difference for male alphas, but also, well, for female alphas, there's this little quirk of our anatomy that only, well, shows, at the full moon or just before and after it. Usually two days either side, but it can be there a bit longer if it's a supermoon. Everything gets a bit supercharged then. It's, um, functional. Fully.”  
  
“Oh.” Taylor didn't want to sound overwhelmed. It wasn't a problem, but like discovering the truth of her species, this new piece of information about her girlfriend was going to require a little processing. She'd always said she'd date a transwoman, regardless what her transition process was or where she was in it, so the actual existence of the, um, member, wasn't an issue. It was just that she hadn't expected it. “Okay. So it's not that I just didn't notice?”  
  
“No, huh uh. I know it's maybe really different for you because I don't think that happens for mortals?” Karlie tried her best to sound reassuring. She really wasn't sure if this might be the point at which her mortal girlfriend freaked out. She hoped not. For wolves, everyone just knew. But Taylor wasn't a wolf and appeared to be pretty naive when it came to wolf culture.  
  
“Yeah, no, it doesn't. It's not...a thing. But, I really like _you_ Karlie, so even though it's different, it's you, so...” Taylor didn't quite know how to explain it. That it wasn't something she was sure she'd be okay with when it was just anyone. But she liked Karlie, a lot, and so maybe it didn't matter. So she just leaned in and gave her another kiss, not quite as urgent as they had been, but deep, and she hoped, meaningful.  
  
“So we're okay?” Karlie figured she had to ask. What if that kiss was a test and Taylor wasn't there anymore.  
  
“Of course we are.” Taylor wrapped her arms around her girlfriend. “We're more than okay.”  
  
-  
  
As she pulled into the driveway, Karlie knew it was more than a little late and hoped she didn’t wake anyone. The last thing she wanted was pointed questions from Kimby or gentle but embarrassing reminders about having respect for other people’s sleep schedules regardless of the night she may have had. It’d been kinda late when she went over to Taylor’s and now was almost the next day. Her arousal was still very present as her mind kept flashing back to the sounds Taylor made and how into it Taylor had been.  
  
She was more than a little grateful to find everyone had gone to bed, though didn’t doubt someone had heard her come in. It’d been a long time since she’d had to worry about one of them seeing something she’d rather they didn’t.  
  
Grabbing her towel, she slipped into the bathroom. Sure she could have just gone to her room for this but Taylor’s scent was all over her and that just wasn’t a good idea if she wanted to get actual sleep before practice. Coach would kick her ass if she falling asleep standing up.  
  
Turning on the water to just shy of boiling, she unbuttoned and unzipped her jeans, groaning softly in relief as she shoved them down. She had worn them for Taylor, knowing her ass looked good in them but they were not the most comfortable thing to come home with blue balls in.   
  
Her boxerbriefs quickly followed and she eagerly stepped into the now warm water. The almost too hot water hitting her felt amazing, but did nothing to help her current circumstance. Running a hand over her shaft she moaned, a tingle going down her spine. Taylor certainly had done a number on her and thinking of the blonde only made her harder. She stroked herself until precum collected on the tip and then used her thumb to spread it, her eyes slipping shut as she did. It was too easy to imagine it was Taylor’s hand instead running up and down her shaft. Her long fingers wrapping around her, soft but calloused slightly from her guitar. Eyes dark as she took in all that Karlie was, enjoying her pleasure and having her aching for her.  
  
Knowing she had to make this quick unless she wanted to be dead in the morning, she brought her other hand to her head, running it over and then around before finally rubbing gently against the spot on the underside and gasping at the feeling. Eyes still closed, she imagine it was Taylor on her knees in front of her, every bit as confident as she’d been modeling and every bit as exposed, confidently smirking as she watched Karlie begin to come undone. Growling lowly, knowing she wouldn’t last much longer, Karlie pictured reaching for the mortal’s hair gently but firmly, and her immediately opening her mouth to take her in. As she came she bit her lip, holding back the cry that would have been Taylor’s name, imagining it was her girl’s eager mouth and throat receiving her and not the shower wall.  
  
Coming back fully to herself, Karlie realized the water had started to cool. She’d been in longer than she thought. Reaching for the shower head, she made sure to thoroughly rinse the shower wall before putting it back and washing Taylor’s scent from herself.   
  
She barely managed to dry herself once she was out of the shower and put her hair into a messy bun. Stumbling into her room, she tossed her towel to the side and pulled on a clean pair of underwear before almost collapsing onto her bed. It had been a good night, but she knew she was going to drag tomorrow. At least she had Taylor to look forward to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whereas some chapters took some effort to get to the length I wanted, this one ended up a bit longer still. We can't promise you when the next update will be since we're currently stuck on the next chapter but trying to push through it and what's after is in a rougher set of chunks still. Nonetheless, we are enjoying this story and universe and hope you are too.


	10. Track Practice

Karlie groaned and blindly flailed for her phone, try to shut off her alarm. It was way too early. It was too early any day, really, but on less than a full night of sleep? No. Just...no.

She didn’t have a choice though. Coach Peters might actually kill her if she missed practice for reasons that weren’t severe illness or pack emergency. Or at least make her wish he’d killed her.

Karlie reluctantly dragged herself out of bed, slipping on the first pair of joggers she found. She’d have to change when she got to practice anyway. At least she’d thrown her hair in a bun last night before crashing. 

Staggering downstairs, she wasn’t surprised to see her parents sitting at the dining room table having breakfast before her dad left for his shift.

“Do you have time for breakfast before practice?” Tracy asked, eyeing the clock. There was enough time if it were any of her other girls, but Karlie seemed to have a knack for always being late no matter what. 

“Something light.” Karlie nodded.

“You got in late.” Kurt said and Karlie shook her head mentally. She knew one of them would be up if not both. Even now that her and Kristine were adults, her parents still had issues sleeping deeply if they weren’t home yet but were expected to be. Kimby had learned that one the hard way, trying to sneak out the same night Kristine had gone to a moon party.

“I needed to make sure Taylor made it home okay.” Karlie said as she filled her plate. She didn’t need to look up to know her parents were having a silent conversation. “She didn’t seem as excited as you’d expect about visiting her pack.”

“Was everything okay?” Tracy asked. “Did they recently have a fight? I know it can be hard when you’re so far away.”

“No, nothing like that.” Karlie hesitated. It was Taylor’s story but she also knew this was something she just didn’t have experience with. She’d never known anyone to have a problem with same gender couples but her mom HAD been mortal in 70s and 80s. She hoped Taylor would understand. She’d said her mom had been her best friend and Karlie’s mom often still was. Not to mention her dad had seen his share of packloss cases over the years. “Well, sort of. Her dad isn’t supportive.”

“What’s not to be supportive of? From what you and Kristine have said, she’s a lovely girl and very bright. She works hard. Has great taste in girlfriends.” Kurt tried to lighten the mood at the end. Despite not having yet met Taylor, he was sure she was a good young woman. He trusted Karlie’s judgement, and Kristine’s if Karlie wasn’t thinking with the right head.

Karlie cringed. “It’s the girlfriend part that’s the problem. He’s one of those mortals. He thinks it’s a choice and doesn’t support her being herself.”

Kurt and Tracy both shook their heads. Of course they knew those mortals existed, they just hadn’t had too many encounters with them. They didn’t tend to last long in wolf communities, where all that mattered was the Moon had blessed your match. Sex, religion, age within reason, even the rare cases of polygamy, what did their opinion matter when the Moon herself had said it should be so?

“And what about her mother?” Tracy asked.

“She passed.” Karlie said, seeing the sympathy and understanding flash across their faces. “Just before she started college. It was breast cancer.”

There was a heavy pause at that information. Cancer was always a personal topic in their home but especially for her dad. She knew he’d almost lost his mate when Kristine was born. None of them had saw it coming when he faced almost losing her again only a few years after the twins were born. Thankfully her mother had been one of the lucky ones. It had been caught early enough and they found the right treatment. But it hadn’t been an easy road in any form.

“Do you mean to tell me she not only lost her mother in a manner that would not have been quick or painless, but she was then separated from her pack with no support system and her sire still decided his views were more important than his pup? And not only did her pack let that happen but so did the school and her peers?” 

Karlie felt herself tense at the tone in her father’s voice. She’d only heard it a few times in her life and knew he was pissed. Which she understood, she had mentally railed about it though kept it in check to comfort Taylor. She’d likely have had a hard time going to sleep from being so worked up about it if she hadn’t been otherwise distracted by the end of the night. 

“Well...I mean...she had Abigail? And then later Abigail’s boyfriend who I think is her mate from what Taylor’s said. And her brother, he’s on her side too.” Karlie knew it sounded weak, even to her own ears. That wasn’t enough. Not after packloss and it was nowhere close to what Taylor deserved.

“You’re to bring her home.” Tracy said in the same tone she’d always used when something wasn’t up for discussion. “Not today, necessarily, but soon. I want to meet her. I wanted to meet her anyway, but now I think I need to. It’s not right, for someone to be abandoned like that after a loss. From what you and Kristine have said, she’s a lovely girl. We’d love to get to know her and if she’s everything you girls have said, I’m sure Taylor will end up with a supportive pack whether you’re mates or not.”

Karlie just nodded, warmed by her parents’ support for someone they’d never met and wondering if she should warn Taylor. Not that she was worried about her parents not liking Taylor. No, she’d been sure by the end of their first date they’d love her. But she didn’t think Taylor was aware she was on the verge of being adopted into a very connected pack or really prepared for it. But she didn’t know what warning she could give that wouldn’t leave the blonde on edge or worse, make her think it was only out of pity.

-

Waking up to an alarm two days in a row on a holiday weekend sucks, Taylor mentally grumbled before she remembered why she’d set the alarm. She’d decided to finally go see Karlie practice, at last feeling it wasn’t too soon. Thankfully, Karlie’s practice lined up with her work schedule.

She knew her girlfriend was looking forward to it, wanting to show off a bit. Taylor couldn’t deny she was looking forward to it to. The thought of a slightly sweaty Karlie and her girlfriend’s muscles had ended up distracting her more than once. Most awkwardly in front of Kristine, though Taylor hoped she had managed to play it off. With the image in her mind, Taylor knew her shower this morning would be a cold one.

She felt sort of silly, taking so much care with her hair and makeup, trying on two different outfits before finally settling on a third that hit the right balance of cute and casual. She knew that for the meets, you probably wore a school shirt or something, like most sports, but for practice, well, she had no idea. She just hoped she wouldn't stand out too much. She knew it was common for the mates of wolf athletes to show up now and then, and that because of that mortals had adopted the practice as well, but it wasn't something that happened at majority mortal schools, so it was sort of new for her.

By the time she'd gotten herself ready, she barely had time to grab coffee and a muffin from the campus coffee cart on her way to the track. She knew Karlie would despair over the lack of meat in her breakfast, but since it was a holiday weekend she deserved to indulge, and they had that team lunch after practice. She could appease the wolf by ordering a burger or something.

Karlie knew her coach was about to lose patience with her while her teammates looked on amused. She’d been distracted all morning, switching from concern for her maybe mate to anticipation once she remembered Taylor was going to come watch her practice. It had her almost bouncing in place and she had to actually make herself focus on her warmup for once. She still found herself smiling over the memory of Taylor asking if that would be okay and the way she’d almost glowed when Karlie said yes almost before the question was fully out.

She just managed to finish when she saw familiar head of blonde curls at the bleachers and was off like a shot.

“Kloss!” Coach Peters yelled, shaking his head as the alpha ignored him.

“You came!” Karlie grinned at Taylor.

“I said I would, didn’t I?” Taylor asked, trying to keep her eyes on Karlie’s face instead of all that was displayed by the form fitting crop top and track shorts.

“Come on, I’ll introduce you quickly to the team’s mates. There’s usually at least a few who come to watch practices.” Karlie said, leaving out that her letting it slip Taylor would be there meant everyone had made sure to show up to this one once the word had gone out.

Taylor felt very self-conscious as Karlie introduced her to all the mates. They were a mixed group, mostly wolves, but she wasn't the lone mortal. Still, she felt like the outsider she was, as they all already seemed to know each other. Many of them had been coming to practices and meets together for four years. But even though she could tell they were giving her an extra look, everyone was friendly and welcoming, offering her a bit of blanket to sit on so the bleachers weren't so hard, and complimenting her on her choice of top.

“Hey, Taylor!” Lucille said, surprised but happy to see the blonde at something on campus that wasn’t one of Abigail’s meets or classes. 

“Hey Lucille!” Taylor said, relieves to see at least one person she sort of knew. “I didn’t know your mate did track.”

“Yeah, you see the slimmer of the two gingers by Karlie? That’s my Shawn.” Lucille said proudly. “He’s a pretty good sprinter but he really comes into his own on the jumps. Oh, wait, let me introduce you to everyone.”

“Everyone, this is Taylor.” Lucille started somewhat unnecessarily. “Taylor this is Kyo who is mated to Angelina. Erika who’s with Courtney. Heather who’s with Benjamin. Crystal who’s with Tyler. Izabel who’s Guy’s girlfriend. And last but not least, Arturo who recently began dating Dominik.”

“It’s nice to meet all of you.” Taylor said, giving a shy wave.

As much as Taylor wanted to make a good impression and be friendly, she found herself a bit distracted as she watched her girlfriend. She knew Karlie was athletic but she hadn’t been expecting her to be as graceful as she was or as powerful. She could see why her wolf had the reputation she did.

Wait, my wolf?! Taylor realized what she’d thought and blushed. Where had that come from?

She was so distracted she didn’t see the knowing and speculative looks being shared between the mates. She tuned back in only when someone touched her shoulder.

There were a few chuckles when Taylor jumped, none of them unkind. Taylor’s blush deepened. “Sorry.”

“It’s fine.” Kyo laughed. “It’s not like any of us were any better the first time we came to a practice. It's the first time you've seen her run, isn't it?”

Taylor bit her lip and nodded. Were they going to think it was early? Or, maybe late? Did they think she should have been at the last meet?

“No wonder you're distracted!” Izabel exclaimed. “First time seeing your new mate run? And I know she's showing off for you. They all do!” The comment was followed by knowing murmurs from the rest of the pack.

But for Taylor, it just raised more questions. Did they all think she and Karlie were mates? Should she tell them they hadn't? She knew it was different in wolf culture, but she still had a hard time silencing the voice that said they were calling her a slut. One thing she knew for sure. If they'd actually asked Karlie, she would have told them the truth. So they probably just figured if she was coming to practice it must be serious. And it was. She just hadn't been ready yet, not for that.

The rest of the practice, they mostly left her to watch in awe as Karlie honed the muscles Taylor was now seeing in a new light. She couldn't help her eyes wandering to Karlie's shorts in particular, part of her curious about what she now knew was beneath them. Overall, it was a friendly and companionable silence, receiving an occasional nudge when Karlie ran a particularly good heat, or when she peered up in the bleachers to grin broadly at Taylor.

The moment the coach released them from practice, Karlie ran over to the bleachers, unable to manage the casual jog she’d wanted. Almost skidding to a stop, she smiled as Taylor stepped down a few bleachers. “What did you think? It wasn’t too boring for you was it?”

“I had fun.” Taylor said, having to work to keep her eyes from following a bead of sweat running slowly down Karlie’s neck. Though it was less embarrassing to get caught by someone else looking at that than what was further down, somewhat difficult not to notice in the snug running shorts. She couldn’t stop herself from imagining her lips following a similar path. Her own attraction to the wolf was strong and being made stronger by the second thanks to the pheromones Karlie was pumping out. She knew she was unable to smell them enough to detect them but there was evidence mortals could still be affected by them. “You’re really good.”

Karlie was helpless against the pleased rumble that travelled through her chest as it puffed out. She could just hear the loud teasing comments from her teammates and was glad for Taylor’s mortal hearing so her girlfriend wouldn’t get embarrassed.

“Are you two coming to Lobo’s with us?” Crystal asked.

Karlie glanced at Taylor and waited for her nod before agreeing to the plan.

“I’ll go shower. Should be quick.” Karlie said, more for Taylor’s benefit than anything. Stealing a quick kiss, being careful not to get any sweat on the mortal, she jogged back to her waiting teammates, accepting the slaps on the back and playful shoves.

-

In the locker room, what had been gentle teasing before practice, Karlie's claims the mortal would be there only half-believed, became full on banter. Her teammates made clear the origins of the term 'wolf whistle.'

“Guys,” Karlie whined. “It's not like that, okay? I...I really care about her. But come on. Some of you mortals, think about how you would feel to have a locker room full of people talking about your first time when it hadn't even happened yet. It's different for mortals. Have some respect.” Karlie hadn't expected to feel so protective of Taylor. But she knew there was a bit of extra snap to her spandex as she yanked off her sports bra.

Normally she had no problem with that kind of locker room banter. Had laughed and joked about previous mating attempts. But those attempts had all been with wolves she knew would talk about it the same way with their packmates. Taylor, she knew, might have talked a little with her swim team packmate about mating. First times and that kind of thing. But that was probably about it. It didn't seem like her pack had the sort of relationship where she and her mom would talk about it.

“Hey Karlie?” Megan spoke through the shower curtain.

“Yeah?”

“We know she matters a lot to you. And we all were just hoping she WAS your mate. But I promise. We'll tone it down with her. You're right. We have to respect that mortals do things differently.”

“Just, be gentle with her at lunch, okay? She's dealing with pack loss and it's just...she's not quite comfortable in big packs yet.” Karlie hoped saying something wasn't going to hurt Taylor. But she knew the pack would know exactly how to welcome a newcomer recovering from pack loss. How to be inviting but not come on too strong. And it would also explain to them instantly that any reticence from the mortal was from that, and not the lycanphobia some had tried to attribute her distance to.

Moving quicker than usual, Karlie finished showering and dressing in almost record time before heading back to her girlfriend. She knew this was a lot for the normally reticent mortal and wanted to check in. As much as she wanted Taylor to build a bond with the her friendpack, she'd happily call it off and ditch them if her girlfriend was uncomfortable or felt overexposed. Once her teammates told their mates about the packloss, she knew they'd understand.

It was a relief when she saw Taylor still with the group. Slightly on the fringes and a bit quiet, but contributing nonetheless and not shutting herself out. Once close enough, she wrapped her arms around the mortal from behind, kissing her cheek and smiling when she felt some of the tension leave Taylor's body instantly. She felt the rest of the pack watching them but ignored them, silently trying to check in to make sure Taylor was still doing okay.

The rest of the team watched as Karlie immediately went to shelter Taylor and the obvious way Taylor melted into it and took comfort in the alpha's presence. If it weren't for the fact Taylor might take offense to it, they'd have started a betting pool then and there on if they were mates. No one in the pack would have bet against it, but they'd be happy to sucker in others.

“So, lunch?” Taylor asked, feeling her stomach rumble and knowing Karlie had to be starving after a hard workout.

“Definitely.” Karlie lowered her voice just a little, trying to ensure only Taylor heard her, as she asked “you still into barbecue with the whole teampack? They're awesome and I really want them to get to know you, but they're also kind of a lot...”

Taylor reluctantly broke away from Karlie's arms so that she could face her as she replied, “The mates have been awesome so far. I mean, they seem to think we've mated already, but that's normal, right? Is the team giving you crap about me? I know I'm not...I haven't really...I'm not all that social.”

Karlie shook her head emphatically. “Nope. They're hoping we're mates because they know I care about you a lot. That's it. Maybe some good natured teasing about having to wait because you're a mortal, but that's entirely about me and not about you. And besides, I can tell you're entirely worth it.” Karlie couldn't suppress the protective growl that surfaced when she thought about the teasing. She knew they wouldn't do anything at dinner, not now that she'd reminded them how to treat a mortal, especially one with packloss.

“Abigail and Matt wanted to join us. They've been wanting to meet you. Do you think anyone will mind?” Taylor asked, unsure if this was a teampack only meal.

“Not at all. I knew a few people know Abigail from the swim team or at least of her and no one is going to mind you inviting your friendpack along.” Karlie said, feeling a little nervous but also pleased. It meant a lot that Taylor wanted Karlie to meet her pack, or the pack she had in Knoxville anyway. But she also knew she had to make a good impression for that reason. Taylor's pack being so small made their opinions even more important. A pack that disapproved of your mate happened, even if it wasn't ultra common. Karlie imagined it was even more of an issue for mortals though, as they didn't feel the mate bond to back up their relationship.

“Good.” Taylor smiled, sending Abigail a text with where to meet them and receiving a reply almost immediately. “She said they'll meet us there but they may be a few minutes late so we shouldn't wait for them.”

Karlie nodded and wrapped an arm around Taylor. She pulled her close, squeezing her shoulder as the two walked toward lunch just a little behind the rest of the pack.

Lobo’s wasn’t what Taylor expected from a barbecue place in Tennesse. Rather than the Memphis style she expected or even Carolina, she found herself walking into a place that screamed Tex-Mex from the moment you got through the door. However unlike the garish chain restaurants she was used to for Tex-Mex, Lobo’s just felt like a local place that had gotten swept up from Austin and plopped in the middle of Knoxville. 

The only pause when they came in was to to see if there was anything in particular Taylor wanted or didn’t like or if Matt and Abigail would want anything in particular. Once she assured them anything would be fine, they split off. Coach Peters took Kayla, Guy, and Angelina to order and carry the food over while the rest of the pack moved to the outdoor covered seating. It was easy enough for a few of the wolves to push a few of the solid looking wood picnic tables together, leaving everyone enough space to crowd around. Taylor noted that she and Karlie were herded towards the center with the spaces across from them being left open, she presumed for Abigail and Matt.

“Isn’t this going to be a lot?” Taylor asked Karlie quietly, realizing they were close to thrity people once Coach Peters’ wife, Lisa, along with Abigail and Matt, got there. Even if everyone chipped in, most of them were wolves and would probably eat a lot.

“It’s covered by the school and Coach called ahead.” Karlie explained, suddenly understanding why Taylor had seemed uncomfortable once she saw the menu, or more accurately, prices. It wasn’t the sort of place a large group of very hungry college students would normally come. “They give each team a budget for team meals. They know a good bond is important. We all vote every year how we want to use it and every year we agree to go in on one good team meal per month instead of something cheap every week.”

“Oh.” Taylor said, feeling a wave of relief. She wasn’t sure what it would average per person but Taylor was sure it’d be more than she’d spent on one meal since high school.

It was easier than she thought it would be, at least so far. They seemed content to let her have the conversation wash over her, occasionally bringing her in with a question or comment. Especially Lucille, Kyo, and Angelina, all of whom she was surprised to realize she’d had classes with at one point or another through her general education requirements. It opened it up a little more, especially when Erika realized they were both business majors. The freshman was more than willing to get Taylor’s opinion on the various professors.

Abigail and Matt arrived just before the food did and Taylor didn’t miss how quickly they were welcomed into the fold or that more than a couple of the trackpack seemed to know Abigail to some degree. Apparently Lucille wasn’t the only connection, as she quickly learned Samantha was Shawn and Simon’s sister.

What really caught her attention was when Coach Peters’s mate arrived just as the food made it to the table. It was clear he still lit up when she entered the room and was happy to see her. Even once they were both sitting and engrossed in conversation as the food was being passed around, Taylor could tell they kept a general awareness of each other. It was something she realized she could see in all the mates. Even if they weren’t the immediate focus of their attention, it was clear they were somehow still the axis they revolved around. She wondered if she and Karlie would ever have that. She hoped so. It wasn’t that she wasn’t aware of Karlie. She’d found she had to set alarms on her phone if they were spending time in the quad or library so she wouldn’t end up late to work or class after. The wolf was too easy to sink into and tune out the rest of the world, especially if whatever other attention she had was focused on reading. And she could feel how the wolf seemed to intentionally keep at least one point of contact, as if to ground her in the midst of the friendly chaos, and checked in. But it was different. The contact and check ins were something they both had to make a conscious note to do. It wasn’t like it seemed to be for the Coach and his wife, or even the newest mated pair of Crystal and Tyler, where it was as natural as breathing. 

Before she could dwell even more, the food began to reach her part of the table. In addition to the expected brisket and ribs, Taylor was surprised to see barbacoa style beef cheeks, smoked pork sausages with oaxaca and serranos, and most of all off the cob elotes which seemed to be mostly for the mortals at the table. She was surprised to see multiple wolves take from the stack of tortillas being passed around until Kayla caught her expression.

“They’re low carb, like the ones starting to make their way into the supermarkets. Mr. Lobo figured out a way to make homemade ones and they’re amazing.” Kayla explained.

And they were. To Taylor’s surprise she doubted she’d find a difference between the barbacoa filled tortilla she’d bit into and the mortal ones she was used to. She wasn’t entirely certain what she’d expected from a wolf teampack lunch, but she hadn’t expected Shawn to turn to Matt and say “Okay, we’ve heard your story from Abigail’s side, but tell us how you knew Abigail was your mate.”

She’d heard both stories before, but she hadn’t expected everyone to be so enraptured. Nor had she expected that to lead to one of the new freshman wolves asking Coach how he and his wife had met, since only mortals had ‘when you knew they were the one’ stories, given all wolves knew in the exact same way. A lot of the stories did eventually lead to mating, including Abigail being more than happy to regale the table with the story of Taylor happening upon them mid-sex, given the story was more embarrassing for her and Matt than it was to Taylor, though Taylor had been mortified at the time.

Eventually, Simon turned to Karlie “so, tell us about you and Taylor. We were all so pleased when you said she’d be coming to practice and lunch today.”

Karlie started. She thought she’d made it clear that they weren’t there yet. But it seemed everyone thought they were mates, like, officially. Oh fuck. “Ha...Tyler hasn’t told us the story about the time he mated on the top bunk of a freshman dorm room and ended up meeting my sire in the ER yet.” She squeezed Taylor’s hand under the table, hoping the mortal hadn’t picked up that everyone apparently thought they HAD mated already, or that at least if she had, she’d taken it as the compliment she thought they meant it as. They were accepting her and her friendpack, and were hoping she’d stick around as Karlie’s mate. It meant they liked her.

The rest of lunch with the pack was exactly what Taylor imagined it to be. Warm, welcoming, and a bit overwhelming. She knew she probably registered as a bit quiet, but the teampack seemed to be okay with that, letting her observe and get to know them. And the food was good, and as usual, way too much for her, though Karlie seemed to push less knowing she'd take home and eventually eat the leftovers. It was a good enough experience to make her wonder why she hadn't tried harder to meet people freshman year. Abigail was great and still her best friend, but she supposed having a wider social circle might have been a good thing.

As they were leaving the restaurant, a couple of the teampack members who had sat closest to her at lunch made sure to tell her they were glad she'd come and that they hoped to see her at practice or a meet again soon, and a couple of the mortals mentioned they were planning to see a movie during the full moon while the wolves were off running with their packs and she should think about joining them. The invitation seemed genuine, and even though Taylor wasn't likely to spend the money on a movie ticket, she appreciate the invitation.

As they walked, more and more of the mate pairs split off, the unmated wolves splitting into den groups, but she realized that only one of the mortals lived remotely close to her own apartment. It shouldn't have been a surprise, really, one bedrooms weren't all that popular with the students at Knoxville, which was why she'd gotten such an affordable rate. A definite upside of a traditionally lycan school - multi-bedroom apartments were actually more expensive than one bedrooms, per person, because most wanted several roommates. Only brand new mate pairs tended to pick singles.

“I'm really glad I came to your practice, Karlie. But unfortunately, I have some studying and laundry to do before classes start again tomorrow. And I know you want to help, but Karls, you're kind of distracting.” To soften the blow, Taylor followed the statement up with a kiss, a deeper one than they'd shared after the last date.

“Ugh. Fine. I guess I could, like, study or something. If I have to. But I'm going to miss you.” Karlie's faux valley girl impression wasn't particularly good, but it made Taylor laugh anyway, until she found herself pulled in for another kiss, this time the sort of kiss that clearly asserted that Karlie was in charge and loving it. It left Taylor breathless, just for a moment, before she could recover herself and grin at her wolf. Her wolf. There was that thought again. Karlie wasn't hers. Not yet. Maybe not ever. But she certainly liked the idea of it.

Taylor could feel Karlie pressing against her and was surprised at the flood of wetness it caused. She was still wrapping her head around this new fact of wolf anatomy, but the fact it was Karlie was enough for her. Feeling the alpha grind into her slightly, her breath catching slightly as she felt just how close to the moon they were, Taylor knew it was time to break it off. Reluctantly, Taylor broke the kiss and firmly pushed Karlie away, the wolf immediately complying. Taylor wasn't sure if her head was spinning from the kiss or the pheromones she was sure Karlie was pumping off. She was sure though that she wouldn't be able to wear these panties again. “You need to go.”

She watched Karlie frown at that. Was...was that a whine?

“Not yet.” Taylor said, seeing all too clearly what thoughts were behind her girlfriend's amber eyes. “I would love for you to stay the night normally. I slept better than I have in a long time last night. But I don't think either of us is thinking about just sleep right now.”

Karlie nodded, reluctantly acknowledging the point. Her instincts were pulsing through her, begging her to mate with the mortal and know once and for all where they stood.

“As much as I want to, I don't want to have regrets, Kar.” Taylor said. “I need a little more time.”

“Whatever you need.” Karlie promised, knowing, smelling, that this was as difficult for Taylor as it was for her.

“Besides, the moon is in a few hours and while I'm sure you're beautiful in your other form, this is a time for you to be with your pack.” Taylor said and Karlie sighed, knowing she was right.

“I don't want to go. But I guess it just means it really matters to you, right? And I think that's a good thing.” Karlie knew there were mortals who had sex as much as any wolf, but that to them, mating didn't have anything to do with being mates. Which was fine, not everyone was ready for their mate. But it seemed Taylor wanted it to be about them being mates, a concept she wholly supported. Though she couldn't help but worry Taylor would be hurt if it turned out they weren't.

“But, I guess we'll just have to wait and see, huh?” Taylor tried to sound teasing. It was something she was looking forward to, even if the possibility that she and Karlie might NOT be mates was maybe scarier than mating itself. Hell. She was calling it mating in her head now, where previously, like most mortals, it had always been sex. Just another way she knew Karlie was an important part of her life now.

“Yeah, I guess so.” Karlie smiled slightly, knowing she'd wait however long Taylor needed but that it wouldn't be easy. She knew there were a lot of showers, both hot and cold, in her future and a lot of teasing from her pack. Knowing the longer she stayed, the more they'd be tempted, Karlie playfully asked, “Do I get one for the road?”

Taylor laughed before giving Karlie a final kiss and playfully pushing her out the door. She couldn't help but grin as she wished the wolf goodnight. As much as she wanted her to stay the night again, and as much as Karlie wanted to, Taylor knew it was too much temptation and she still wasn't really ready even if her body had other ideas at the moment.

Heading back to her room, she thought it was a good thing she wasn't a wolf or the pheromones she was putting off would have let everyone know how turned on she was. She froze in the doorway. Wait, fuck. Smell. Could Karlie have....could everyone have ??? Fuck.

It did explain the pleased and almost smug look on her wolf's face before she left. Taylor couldn't even be mad at her. She'd be smug too if she'd gotten Karlie that worked up with one kiss. Remembering the way her girlfriend had taken control of the kiss sent a small shiver of pleasure down her spine. She'd do better studying if she wasn't otherwise distracted right? Another shower was definitely in order. Although, she thought with a grin, at least she had plenty of time for a warm one if she put her first load of laundry in first. The in-flat washer and dryer being just another attempt by management to lure in tenants.

After a couple hours of studying, folding, and emailing Kristine her progress on their project, she knew it was time to turn in for the night if she wanted to make her opening shift tomorrow. Once in bed, she tossed and turned, growling in frustration before sitting up. Some part of her brain wondered how amused Karlie would be at her pathetic attempt at growling and she realized what the problem was. She and Karlie had fit like a puzzle while sleeping and even if it wasn't wise she still wanted her wolf curled around her.

Is it too soon to ask Karlie for one of her team jackets or sweatshirts? Taylor wondered. Possibly, she thought. Either way she knew she wouldn't be brave enough to ask. Any “accidental” procurement was made more complicated by the fact it wasn't even cold enough to borrow one and “forget” to return it. Hopefully her wolf would wear a flannel soon and she could borrow that. Laying there for a moment, she was tempted to call her but knew it was too tempting to invite her over. Groaning, she attempted to beat her pillow into a more comfortable shape and laid back down.

-

“So? Did she come? I know she did!” Karlie tried to ignore the possible alternate meanings of Kimby's question because she seriously hoped her little sister wasn't asking about her prowess in the bedroom. And no, although Taylor had certainly let every wolf in a ten block radius know her body wanted to, she had not, as of yet, come.

“Taylor was at practice this morning, yes. And she came to lunch with the teampack.” Karlie was pleased her pack was so encouraging of her relationship with Taylor, even if Kimby's way of being encouraging was a bit much at times.

“Good! I know it's different with mortals but I kind of wish you two would just mate already. I know you're mates. Kristine said so, and she's usually right, you know.” Kimby flounced off, which was probably a good thing as she suspected her parents wanted to continue to have four pups. She made a mental note to remind her parents to sign her up for the more inclusive sex ed class at school, because she obviously didn't know enough about mortals to know that letting Taylor take her time was the right thing to do. She was shaking her head at the thought when her mom came in.

“Hey Karlie, did you have a good practice? Was a certain mortal there to watch?” Tracy knew Karlie had been a little nervous that morning. With Taylor having only just found out about the unusual quirks of female alpha wolves, Karlie wasn't sure what her human date would make of it.

“She was,” Karlie grinned, blushing a little. Karlie was hopeful she and her mom might steal a bit of time away from the prying ears of her sisters. It was nearly the full moon, and as it would be her first with a mortal girlfriend, she wanted to make sure she treated Taylor well, while still having plenty of pack time.

“I know you all just ate a heap of barbecue, but do you want a snack or anything before we get ready for the Moon? It’s almost time.” Tracy knew just how much her athletic daughter could eat, and she also knew none of them wanted to be slowed down by a trip to a meat stand on the way out of town.

“I’m good, thanks Mom.” Karlie paused, unsure if she was ready to voice what she was thinking. “Do you...d’you think maybe Taylor could come up to the cabin with us sometime? I mean, as a friend? She’s trying to learn more about wolves and stuff and I think she’d really like it but it’s also kind of special, so...”

Tracy shook her head. Her middle pup had it bad. She could only hope the two turned out to be mates or she was going to have one disappointed pup on her hands. “I think we’d better meet her first, but if she’s that special to you, I’m certain she’d be more than welcome. Now, go put your stuff away, we’ve got a Moon to honor.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's a bird! It's a plane! It's an actual fucking update! Yeah, we're amazed it's finally here too. But after weeks of banging our heads against the wall, we're just calling it good. So pray to the higher power(s) of your choice that the next chapter goes smoother.


End file.
